March 24, 2014

Posted on March 25, 2014 by jgarrott

Job 42:3 “Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know.

There’s a lot of that that goes on! It is interesting as well as amusing that we so hate to admit that we don’t know things, and how we pontificate to try to hide that fact. Actually, a great deal of harm has been done down through the centuries by people in positions of authority or responsibility acting this way. It may take courage to admit you don’t know, but the end result is far better than acting on ignorance. It is interesting that sometimes people who actually know a great deal, like scientists, believe their own publicity, so to speak, and think they know far more than they actually do. That happens a great deal, actually. When it is innocent, with no hidden motives, it’s largely harmless, even if amusing, but sometimes there is a real agenda behind it, whether conscious or not. That’s certainly the case with vehemently atheistic scientists, who speak as though their theories of the origin of life and the universe were proven fact, when actually they are no more than attempts to eliminate the logical necessity of a Creator. That again would simply be amusing if they didn’t deceive so many others in the process. Anyone who is an “authority” on anything really needs the humility to acknowledge the limits of their knowledge and understanding, because in the final analysis, those limits are pretty severe.

I’m certainly talking about myself here! Thankfully I’ve never been atheistic, but I have tended to pontificate all my life. I do have a high IQ and wide interests, but an honest evaluation shows that there is infinitely more that I don’t know than I do know. Sometimes you wouldn’t think that to listen to me! However, I must not deny the knowledge I have been given by the grace of God. Like Paul, I know Whom I have believed, (2 Timothy 1:12) and that knowledge is sufficient foundation for the rest of life. I have always enjoyed knowing stuff, from reading the Encyclopedia Britannica for fun in the 4th grade to browsing the Internet today. However, such knowledge is ephemeral at best, because this world is not eternal, whatever the materialists say. Every aspect, every moment of my life needs to be a reflection of what I know of God, and an effort to help others know Him too. For that to be true, I need constantly to be pressing in to know more of Him, because there is always more to learn.

Father, thank You for Your incredible grace in revealing Yourself to mankind, most especially through Your Son, and also through Your Word and Your Spirit. Help me receive accurately what You reveal to me and communicate it without distortion, never in pride but in profound gratitude, so that as many as possible may worship You in spirit and in truth, (John 4:23-24) for Your pleasure and glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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March 23, 2014

Posted on March 25, 2014 by jgarrott

Job 36:15 “But those who suffer he delivers in their suffering;
he speaks to them in their affliction.

I don’t know that I’ve ever really noticed this verse before; it wasn’t underlined in any Bible I’ve used for the past 30 years! The NIV says, “He speaks to them,” but the Japanese says, “He opens their ears.” The point is not that God doesn’t talk to us until we are suffering, it’s that we often don’t listen until we are suffering. That’s a very important distinction! Any suffering is ultimately worth it if it gets us into intimate fellowship with God. Fanny Crosby is one of many examples. She was blind, but wrote many, many hymns of worship and praise. There were some clunkers, but several are among the best-loved hymns of all time. She allowed her suffering to open her ears, and the whole Church benefited. Some people respond to suffering as she did, but some simply harden their shell, cutting themselves off from God and from those around them. That is true tragedy! Jesus affirmed that in this world we would have troubles, (John 16:33) but He also told us to rejoice, because He had overcome the world. We won’t rejoice in the middle of suffering unless our hearts are open enough to Christ to recognize His victory.

I am certainly no exception to the rule here. I don’t feel like my personal sufferings hold a candle to what some people endure, but they still have the potential of either opening me up or cutting me off. My choices are what determine which it will be. As a pastor, I am constantly dealing with people who are suffering in many different ways. Some of their suffering puts anything I’ve experienced in the shade, but sometimes their suffering is largely in their response to circumstances that really aren’t so bad. That calls for wisdom as well as empathy. Suffering is ultimately subjective; to someone in minor circumstances, their suffering feels just as great as what someone in major circumstances experiences. I must not forget that! Sometimes I need to bring a word of correction to such people, but I must never make them feel worthless in the process. I am to be a channel of love, grace, and comfort first of all, and then correction as necessary. I don’t have the wisdom or insight to keep that straight, so I’ve got to depend on the Holy Spirit at all times, for Him to direct my words and my actions.

Father, You know the situation I’m in the middle of dealing with right now. I’ll have more direct interaction with it today. I ask You to guard my lips so that I don’t say anything that is not of You, but rather allow Your Word to flow through me to break down the lies of the enemy and set people free on all levels, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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QUOTE (Corrie ten Boom) – Feb 28

Posted on March 24, 2014 by jgarrott

This is the first time I’ve ever reblogged anything, but this particular story is one of absolutely powerful significance. Corrie was awesome, because of the awesome Lord she served with her whole heart.

JD Blom's avatarA DEVOTED LIFE

Corrie ten Boom, "The Hiding Place" Corrie ten Boom, “The Hiding Place” (Photo credit: Corrie ten Boom Museum)

“Now he was in front of me, hand thrust out: ‘A fine message, Fräulein! How good it is to know that, as you say, all our sins are at the bottom of the sea!’  And I, who had spoken so glibly of forgiveness, fumbled in my pocketbook rather than take that hand. He would not remember me, of course—how could he remember one prisoner among those thousands of women?

But I remembered him and the leather crop swinging from his belt. I was face-to-face with one of my captors and my blood seemed to freeze.

‘You mentioned Ravensbruck in your talk,’ he was saying, ‘I was a guard there.’  No, he did not remember me.  ‘But since that time,’ he went on, ‘I have become a Christian. I know that God has forgiven me for the cruel things I…

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March 22, 2014

Posted on March 23, 2014 by jgarrott

Job 35:6-7 “If you sin, how does that affect him?
If your sins are many, what does that do to him?
If you are righteous, what do you give to him,
or what does he receive from your hand?”

This is a point that we tend to forget sometimes, and forgetting it blunts our appreciation of God’s grace. Simply put, God doesn’t need us. He created us, just as He created the rest of the universe, and He chooses to love us, but that is because of His choice and not out of any logical necessity. We are so prone to think, or at least feel, that God owes us something, when as Elihu points out here, nothing could be further from the truth. That should make us all the more grateful for all that He gives us, but all too often it doesn’t. We develop a sense of entitlement for what we already have and more, and that more than anything else robs us of the joy, peace, and satisfaction God intends for us. Job Himself got it right at the beginning of all his trials: “The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the Name of the Lord be praised.” (Job 1:21) What multiplied his suffering was not just his friends accusing him falsely, it was his feeling that “I deserve better than this.” We can expect God to act consistently with His character, but that’s not the same as expecting Him to be a “sugar daddy.” Gratitude, and the obedience that should come from it, are the keys to walking in the abundance that the Bible makes clear God intends for us. However, we are to evaluate that abundance from His perspective and not from a strictly materialistic one.

God has been so incredibly gracious toward me that I couldn’t begin to express it all. However, from the world’s perspective my life has been less than spectacular. Praise God, I’m not here to be a spectacle for the world! I am here to develop and grow in a deepening relationship with my Creator to prepare me to spend eternity with Him, for His pleasure and glory. At the start that was His choice, not mine, but by His grace He enabled me to respond to His love and choose to follow Him. As Jesus said, “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit – fruit that will last.” (John 15:16) I can’t give God anything He hasn’t given me or enabled me to do, so the least I can do is be faithful with what He has placed in my hands. By my choice I can offer Him “a sacrifice of praise – the fruit of lips that confess His Name.” (Hebrews 13:15)

Father, thank You for growing me in my appreciation of Your grace. Thank You for carrying me through all You allow me to experience. Help me be an increasingly open conduit for Your grace and love to flow to those around me, so that they too may turn to You in gratitude and obedience, for Your pleasure and glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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March 21, 2014

Posted on March 23, 2014 by jgarrott

Job 33:14 “For God does speak – now one way, not another – though we may not perceive it.

It is seen as fanatical or delusional by many people to say that God spoke to you, yet He is constantly speaking to us all. What follows this verse are several of the less pleasant ways God might speak to someone, but He is certainly not limited to pain and suffering as means of expression. The problem is strictly a matter of getting us to listen, and pain and suffering are sadly necessary for that purpose at times. Jesus spoke many times of “having ears,” when He walked in Galilee and Judea and even after His resurrection and ascension. (Revelation 2:11, etc.) Today we have the enormous advantage of the written Bible, and God will often bring His Word to life off the page into our hearts. He is certainly not limited to that, but He will never say anything to us by some other means that contradicts what is in the Bible. The whole question, as this verse indicates, is whether we are listening to recognize His voice. All sorts of things cloud our perception of Him, and modern society has raised distraction to an art form! That’s why it’s essential that we start each day choosing to focus on God, in prayer and through reading His Word. Any day we fail to do that makes it more likely we will miss what He is saying to guide and bless us, and instead be deceived by the voices of our flesh, the world, and the devil.

Just last night my wife was telling her brother and sister-in-law how God had started speaking to her from when she was three years told to be a missionary, and how He has strengthened that repeatedly over the years. That might be somewhat exceptional, but even so I don’t think it’s so rare. The problem is, parents and other adults too often poo poo such pronouncements from children, and even actively work to contradict them. Thankfully, Cathy’s parents were committed Christians who loved the Lord, and though I don’t think they pushed her in the direction of missions, they certainly didn’t hinder her. I couldn’t begin to enumerate all the times the Lord has spoken to me, because He does it so frequently. Only twice has it been as though I heard a voice, but He has spoken through other believers and even through my own mouth. Certainly He speaks to me almost every time I open the Bible. As a pastor, one of my earnest desires is that the believers gain an expectation of hearing God and learn how to recognize His voice. I’m reminded of the old Gramophone (I think it was) symbol of a dalmatian listening to a record player, with the words, “His master’s voice.” I want them to fall in love with Him so that they devote themselves to listening obediently, because that is the way to ultimate good in every area of life.

Father, thank You for Your love that makes You want to fellowship with us, Your children. Thank You that You do listen to us, and that You speak to us as well. Help me teach others the joy of talking with You instead of at You, hearing what You are saying so that they may know the way to go, for their blessing and Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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March 20, 2014

Posted on March 23, 2014 by jgarrott

Job 23:10 “But He knows the way that I take;
when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold.

Job’s confidence was actually a special case, because, as David and Paul point out, “There is no one righteous, not even one.” (Psalm 14:3, Romans 3:10) However, Job was enduring what he was as a special lesson for all who would follow, that there is not a one-to-one relationship between our trials and things we have done. However, Job has one thing spot-on in his statement here that applies to everyone, and that is that God knows the ways we take. It is amusing, as well as sad, to see so many people trying to hide things from God. People rightly get upset at the government spying on them, but they forget that “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight,” (Hebrews 4:13) and He even pays attention to how many hairs we have on our heads! (Matthew 10:30) However, even Adam and Eve tried to hide from God once they realized they had sinned. (Genesis 3:8) We are so foolish! However, God loves us anyway, and that is what is so marvelous. God knew our weakness – after all, He created us – and He provided righteousness for us in Christ. (1 Corinthians 1:30) When we abide in Christ, then we indeed come through all our trials as pure gold, with all the impurities burned out. That’s something to which we can really look forward.

I couldn’t begin to catalog all my past sins, but not one of them escaped God’s notice at the time. However, God has covered them over and washed them away with the blood of His Son, and that is certainly reason to rejoice. Nonetheless, I am not to be satisfied with my own salvation and fail to seek to lead others into that same relationship with their Creator. It is my personal conviction that anyone who is not concerned for the salvation of others has no real grasp of from what they have been saved, and they may not even be saved. It is at the very least true that anyone who is not concerned for the salvation of others has no real grasp of the heart of God. That said, we must also realize that we cannot save anyone ourselves, we can only be available to God for Him to do the saving through us. However, we should actively seek opportunities to be so used, and make the most of them. (Ephesians 5:16) For someone who understands their own salvation, there is no greater joy than leading someone else into that same salvation. As a pastor, I am to be encouraging and training the believers to recognize the opportunities they are given and make the most of them, so that we may rejoice together as more and more are added to God’s family.

Father, thank You for the assurance You have given me, and for the incredible privilege of passing that assurance on to others. Help me do so more and more effectively, through a growing army of Your disciples, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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March 19, 2014

Posted on March 23, 2014 by jgarrott

Job 17:3 “Give me, O God, the pledge you demand.
Who else will put up security for me?”

Job seems to have grasped one of the fundamental, yet somewhat counter-intuitive, truths of the Bible: God never requires anything of us that He hasn’t supplied. Often we don’t recognize His supply until we make the choice to give Him what He is asking, but if we will indeed make that choice, we will discover that His supply is always sufficient. This is true in every area of life. Paul was explicit about it both in the area of finances (Philippians 4:19) and emotional/physical strength. (Philippians 4:13) Our difficulties come when we fail to believe and trust this to be true. Almost all the time, dread of something is even worse than the thing itself. For the Christian, that certainly includes even death itself. When we know we are facing something difficult, we, like Job, can ask God with confidence for whatever we will need to get through it. However, that doesn’t mean that the result will be whatever pie-in-the sky scenario we dream up. We have to trust God that His solution is going to be good, whether or not it matches what our very limited minds can imagine. Here again Paul has some cogent insight: “Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the Church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.” (Ephesians 3:20-21)

Many, many times I have experienced God getting me through situations and enabling me to to do things that I would not have thought beforehand I could handle. That has given me a willingness to try new things that surprises some people. I certainly can’t say that everything God has asked of me has been easy, but He has always gotten me through it. Had they been easy, I wouldn’t have grown in the process! That has made me very much a “the glass is half full” sort of person. Actually, rather than “it’s half full,” it’s more, “it has enough in it.” Even so, I still have moments when I get anxious, and they are reminders that I will always have room for growth. After all, when God required atonement for my sins He supplied His own Son as that atonement. That is the ultimate example of this principle.

Father, this is a very powerful truth. What You said yesterday and what You have just said fit together in a very important message. Guide me in recognizing the organization You want it to have so that it will communicate as effectively as possible to those who need to hear it. Guide me, not just in the pulpit but in every interaction, in communicating Your absolutely incredible grace and love to those who recognize their need for it, so that they may open their hearts to You fully and receive Your abundant supply, for their salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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March 18, 2014

Posted on March 23, 2014 by jgarrott

Job 2:9-10 “His wife said to him, “Are you still holding on to your integrity? Curse God and die!”
He replied, “You are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?”
In all this, Job did not sin in what he said.

Sometimes those closest to you can be your biggest problem, and they are certainly able to deal you the most painful wounds. We sometimes forget that Job’s wife lost her children and possessions too, just as Job did. The only trial she didn’t share equally with him was the physical affliction. Her remark here was made out of the anguish of her own soul, and really shouldn’t be so surprising. I personally wouldn’t be too hard on her, even though her words to her husband were deeply wounding. I have known of several situations where people told their family members to die, though I haven’t been close to a physical murder. It’s never a good thing, but it’s not so rare. Job’s response is all the more commendable, because he actually didn’t even call his wife a fool, he just said that her statement was something a foolish person would say. What he said after that had real potential to help her gain perspective on her own grief, as well as to understand him. It is important and valuable that the story of Job is in the Bible, because as true as it is that actions have consequences, which is stressed in the rest of the Bible, sometimes things just happen, and aren’t punishment for anything. This issue came up in relation to the man born blind whom Jesus encountered in John 9. Jesus said then, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life.” (John 9:3) The end result of all of Job’s trials was glory to God and massive spiritual growth in him. I’m sure his wife was likewise comforted, and grew right along with him. Our response to trials should first be to see if the cause, or the trigger at least, is in us, and if we find anything, repent. If we find nothing, we should rest assured that God will work it all out for blessing in the long run, and seek to gain whatever He wants to give us in the process. (Romans 8:28)

From my current perspective I don’t feel like I’ve been through particularly severe trials, though I have certainly had experiences that weren’t pleasant at the time. In the middle of them I certainly thought of them as trials! As a pastor I am constantly dealing with people who are going through all sorts of trials, some of them quite severe. My challenge is to point them all to Christ, without making light of what they are going through. That’s something at which I certainly don’t have a perfect batting average! I frequently quote John 16:33 to people: “In this world you will have trouble, but rejoice! I have overcome the world.” Peter said we aren’t to be “surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you.” (1 Peter 4:12) Then he goes on to say, “But rejoice that you are participating in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when His glory is revealed.” (1 Peter 4:13) That’s not masoch­ism, that’s faith! I cannot force anyone to have such faith, but I can encourage them to receive the faith that God offers.

Father, You know who in this church is going through painful trials right now. Help me come alongside them, comforting and encouraging and never belittling, so that they may indeed come through purified, with increased maturity and unshakable peace and joy, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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March 17, 2014

Posted on March 18, 2014 by jgarrott

Nehemiah 9:8 “You have kept your promise because you are righteous.”

Reading the Bible in two languages really makes you think in ways that aren’t obvious to a monolingual person. Japanese has a very good word for righteousness, as a noun, but when it comes to what in English is simply the adjective form of the same word, righteous, Japanese  says, “correct.” Of course “right,” or correct, is the root of the English terminology, but we don’t necessarily think about the connection. Coming to this verse, it should be completely obvious that God does things right. However, human beings are forever accusing God of getting things wrong! A fundamental element of repentance is acknowledging before God that He’s right and we’re not. That really sticks in the craw of some people! We become experts at excuses very early on, in our individual lives and in the history of mankind. After all, it started in the Garden of Eden, when Adam blamed Eve and Eve blamed the serpent! This is intimately connected with our pride, which is at the root of all sorts of sin. (1 John 2:16) Coming “right” down to it, to be right before God, we have to acknowledge that He is right, period. By His grace we may be right, but never in opposition to Him.

I have been a real master at making excuses most of my life. I have quite a track record of not responding well to correction, and it has been a real hindrance to my spiritual and emotional growth. That has been complicated by the quirk of Japanese culture that blurs the line between a reason and an excuse. If someone is offended by your actions and you try to explain how it happened, they are very likely to be even more offended, because you are “excusing” yourself. You are supposed to hang your head and say, “I was wrong. I’m sorry.” Before God, that’s the right attitude, but people aren’t God! A common expression in Japanese is, “I have no excuse.” We need to practice that, and mean it, before God! However, things aren’t so simple in interpersonal relationships, because none of us are God. I had someone leave the church over an offense that to this day I don’t know what it was. They were increasingly offended because I didn’t know what I had done, and no one else could explain it to me either! I need to remember that ultimately only God is right, and only in Christ can I be right, and so let His grace flow through me.

Father, this is certainly an ongoing issue. Help me let go of my “right to be right” (now there’s a problem with the English language!) and accept the gift of righteousness through Jesus Christ my Lord, (1 Corinthians 1:30) so that Your grace and love may flow through me unhindered, for the blessing and salvation of many. Thank You. Praise God!

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March 16, 2014

Posted on March 18, 2014 by jgarrott

Ezra 9:13 “What has happened to us is a result of our evil deeds and our great guilt, and yet, our God, you have punished us less than our sins have deserved and have given us a remnant like this.”

This is the opposite of the common complaint of “Why me?” As such, it is highly commendable in God’s sight. We have so little grasp of how utterly holy God is, and how little we honor that! We need to have the attitude expressed in a Chris Christianson song of about 40 years ago: “Why me, Lord? What have I ever done to deserve even one of the good things You gave?” We should be amazed at God’s grace, not at how our actions and attitudes catch up with us! It’s not at all that God is waiting to zap us, it’s that we work so hard at trying to escape the rules He’s given to protect us. However nothing is less “politically correct” than to say something that would hint that such things as STDs are the natural consequence of ignoring God’s rules. However, ignoring God’s moral laws is on the plane of ignoring the laws of thermodynamics or the law of gravity, if not more so. After all, Jesus could walk on water, and after resurrection could walk through locked doors, but He never even tried to break God’s moral laws. We are not to be legalists, paralyzed by fear that we might break a rule. After all, the Bible says clearly that “the letter [of the law] kills, but the Spirit gives life.” (2 Corinthians 3:6) Rather, we are to view everything that happens to us as God’s training to point us to Him, and seek to get it right the first time out of love and gratitude towards Him.

At times I’m reminded of something Mother Theresa once said: “I know God will never give me anything I can’t handle, but sometimes I wish He didn’t trust me so much!” I need to remember at all times that everything God does is love, whatever it looks like. The next few months have a packed schedule. I am to look at each thing as an expression of God’s grace and love. Each of them individually might be easy to see that way, but when I look at them in aggregate, I am overwhelmed to the point of wanting to run and hide. That’s no way to receive God’s blessings! I am to walk in faithfulness, remembering that “I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.” (Philippians 4:13)

Father, thank You for Your grace and strength. Thank You for getting us through the day yesterday. I pray that all who attended the meeting in Fukuoka, and those who will attend today, would retain what You spoke to and did in them, to bear abundant fruit. Thank You for the many people we could see, and for how people sought us out. Thank You for Your plans for today. I pray that we would rest, relax, and rejoice in Your goodness, today and each day, so that we won’t miss anything that You want to do for or through us, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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