Tag: Holy Spirit

Permission to Play

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I am writing a novel. Speaking of which: It has taken me about four decades to give myself permission to be a novelist.

The problem was me. No one forbade me to be a novelist. I did not grow up in a home where being a novelist (or any form of art) was frowned upon. On the contrary, my parents were of the disposition they just wanted us to pursue a life that made us happy (okay, after getting a college degree). But somewhere along the line, I became convinced the life of a novelist is a life I could not take too seriously because it was too enjoyable.

In her iconic work The Artist’s Way, author Julia Cameron remarks, “In order to move from the realm of shadows to the light of creativity, [artists] must learn to take themselves seriously. With gentle, deliberate effort, they must nurture their artist child. Creativity is play, but for the [artist], learning to allow themselves to play is hard work” (emphasis added).

Being an artist is hard work. But the hardest part of the job can be giving yourself permission to be one, and that means ––by any definition I have ever read in a book or article on creativity –– allowing yourself to play.

The difficulty for many of us is that we do not believe we deserve to play. I am not talking about goofing off and abandoning all responsibilities. I am talking about the play that lies at the heart of any artistic endeavor. And also every great work. Michelangelo was about serious work in the Sistine Chapel. But Michelangelo was also playing. While others were about serious business at the time of the Renaissance, Michelangelo was messing around bringing forth King David from a block of marble. You get the idea.

We are all artists. Each of us is uniquely created by God and called to leave our unique imprint upon the world. Each of us possess that one thing that God in his wisdom and foresight has imparted to us the wisdom, power, and grace for us to do, so much so –– dare I say –– that it feels like play. Yes, life is serious business. And we all have important things to do. But do not be surprised to find, as life finally draws to a close and we take that glorious step into eternity, that play was the most important thing we could have done this side of heaven. After all, we are commanded to become like children.

Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section below!

Thankful for The Moment

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Nothing is essential, real, or of any value unless ordained by God who arranges all things and makes them useful to the soul.

Jean-Pierre de Caussade, Abandonment to Divine Providence .

Jesus’ death on the Cross has given us many blessings, but one often overlooked is the revelation there is nothing that takes place in your life outside your Heavenly Father’s care. That the very hairs of your head are counted. We are worth more than many sparrows. So in all things, we need not fear, because God Our Father is causing all things to work for our good.

All things means all things; nothing escapes his attention or his divine purpose. No matter what you are experiencing, he is with you in it, always at work for your good. This is not just a sentimental idea; it is something that cost him his very life. If we feel life (or at least part of life) falls outside his care – that we are all alone and on our own in it – it is not because it is so. It is simply an indication our thinking has yet to be transformed. We have yet to realize how thoroughly and profoundly we have been delivered from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of his precious Son.

We are now receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken. It is flowing like a river from his precious throne, giving life to the Tree of Life bearing fruit in every season and providing healing to us each day. No matter what moment of life we find ourselves in right now, with all its blessings and challenges, we have permission to be thankful.

For This Very Purpose

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It does not, therefore, depend on human desire or effort, but on God’s mercy. For Scripture says to Pharaoh: “I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.” Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden.

Romans 9:16-18 (NIV)

As we have discussed before, God causes all things to work together for our good, and he does so sovereignly. This means that there could be a myriad of immediate reasons why a thing is taking place in our lives (e.g. our own choices, the devil), but that God, who is above it all, is ultimately causing it all to work together for our good.

I have addressed before the importance of understanding the difference between an immediate cause and God ultimately causing a thing to happen before, and how failing to understand this difference gets us into all sorts of problems theologically. But I want to focus on a beautiful promise embedded in the fact God is the ultimate cause behind all that takes place in our lives; namely, there is no such thing as us ever finding ourselves in a situation without hope because it is “all our fault.”

Whenever we walk through something difficult, it is easy for us to blame ourselves. At the very least, it is easy for us to fear the reason we find ourselves in this mess is because of us. A child is having difficulty, so we feel guilty we have done something wrong as parents. We suddenly find ourselves without a job, and feel guilty it is because of our job performance. Or a loved one dies, and we feel guilty there was something we could have done to prevent it. This way of thinking – tying a difficulty to our conduct and performance – is more that just recognizing the principle of cause and effect. It is believing God’s actions toward us are tied to our conduct and human effort. When we think we are in the mess we are in because of what we have done, especially if we are left with the feeling because of this there is no hope, we are actually thinking God’s grace is achieved through works and human effort. We are still living under the Law.

But God is not. From the moment we have received him, he has made a commitment to us that everything that takes place in our lives will be working together for our good, whether we had a part to play in where we find ourselves or not. His words to us are similar to those he spoke to Pharaoh: “I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.” The difference, however, is not by bringing judgment upon us and our household, but by making all of us a public spectacle of his extravagant grace.

Photo by Jeroen van Nierop on Unsplash

Do Not Fear

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But the angel reassured her, saying, “Do not yield to your fear, Mary, for the Lord has found delight in you and has chosen to surprise you with a wonderful gift.

Luke 1:30 (TPT)

Recently I have been meditating on God’s peace and its opposite, fear. For a variety of reasons, this season has been particularly stressful, and by that I mean it has given opportunity for me to feel afraid. But in the midst of this, during times of worship and prayer, I keep getting the impression not only that there is no reason to fear but also there is an entire world out there free from its tyranny.

We often use fear to keep ourselves safe and are told just as often fear is a good thing, that we should live lives governed by fear. But it is striking how often God tells us not to be afraid: the angel before the shepherds,1 the angel with Mary,2 Jesus before Peter,3 Jesus before the disciples in the midst of the storm,4 Jesus before the synagogue ruler who has been told his daughter has just died but Jesus promised to heal,5 and Jesus before all of us, telling us we are worth more that a great number of sparrows, each of which does not go unnoticed in the sight of God.6 Is it possible fear is an inferior way to govern our lives?

Scripture says we as believers have been transferred from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light, that he has adopted us as his children so that his tremendous love would cascade over us, for the same love he has for Jesus he has for us.7 We now live in a kingdom where love is the currency, and perfect love casts out fear. Indeed, the one who fears has not been made perfect in love. The perfect human, then, is not one who uses fear to keep themselves safe. That may have been useful to our former way of life, but God has now made possible a life without fear.

A life without fear does not mean we do whatever we want (walking off a cliff comes to mind!). It is a question of what governs us. We are now governed by his love, not just in principle but in practice through the power and leading of the Holy Spirit. And that means we no longer need to be ruled by fear. Wherever we find ourselves anxious, stressed out, or otherwise afraid, it is an opportunity for God’s love. Do not try to overcome fear; allow God’s love to overcome it for you. Ask God today for a deeper revelation of his love in your life, that you might take advantage of the full inheritance you have received through his precious blood.

And yes, I am speaking to myself 🙂

Photo by Julian Hanslmaier on Unsplash

  1. Luke 2:10 ↩︎
  2. Luke 1:30 ↩︎
  3. Luke 5:10 ↩︎
  4. Matthew 8:26 ↩︎
  5. Mary 5:36 ↩︎
  6. Luke 12:7 ↩︎
  7. Ephesians 1:5-6 (TPT) ↩︎

The Beautiful and the Excellent

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Be assured that anything you do that is beautiful and excellent will be repaid by our Lord

Ephesians 6:8 (TPT)

I remember a time not long ago when I was going through it. Despite my best efforts, everything seemed to be going wrong. And I did not see how any of it was going to work out for my benefit. It just seemed as though I had signed up to suffer in that season of my life without any return for my suffering or sacrifice. And then one night, on the way home from the office, the Holy Spirit met me in an unusual way and showed me, whatever benefits it may have here on earth, my present obedience had eternal value in heaven. That there was transcendent value in what I was going through. And with that revelation, my heart came to rest. I realized in that moment my struggle was not really about the suffering I was going through, but rather the fear my suffering had absolutely no meaning or value.

I am a firm believer faith produces results. But if we are not careful, we can assume the whole purpose of faith is to produce results. That the only reason we believe God is for God to do this or do that for us. That the only value faith has is the benefits it can produce in this life. The problem here is that it reduces our faith down to how it benefits us. And even though God wants to shower us with benefits, and those benefits come by faith and cannot come any other way, thinking this way eclipses something fundamentally beautiful and important about the Christian faith: what we do and how we live has transcendent value.

The Christian life is primarily, if not entirely, motivated by transcendent value. For example, we love because he first loved us, not in order to receive anything in return. It is selfless, but it is not pointless. The new believer radically saved by Jesus who is suddenly charitable and kind to his or her friends and neighbors is not doing so for personal gain: they are doing so because what matters to them now most goes beyond this world and anything it has to offer. They are operating from another kingdom that cannot be shaken, making decisions that have value according to that kingdom alone. They are reflecting heaven.

They know anything they do that is beautiful and excellent will be repaid by our Lord, and so can we.

Photo by Marie Bellando Mitjans on Unsplash