WHAT YOU LOOKIN' AT?

If you’ve ever been owned by a cat, you can identify with that sometimes creepy feeling that comes from a kitty unblinkingly staring at you with its intense guilt-and-fear-inducing glare, and you swear that kitty must be an alien subversively implanted in your house, like “pod people,” only cute, and with fur.

In a somewhat related way, decades ago, my 3-year-old brother once had a one-sided conversation with another small child in the grocery store.  He was installed in the cart seat when I heard him sternly say, “you quit looking at me, boy!”  Sure enough, another kid in a cart seat was looking at my brother.  No clue why, just staring him down.  And little brother repeated his demand, “quit looking at me!”

Yessiree, there’s just something about being stared at that automatically makes us defensive and on-edge, saying, “what are you looking at?”

In His ever-perfect timing, the Lord brought these instances to my mind while I was reading in Luke 22:61 about Peter’s three-time denial of Christ right before the crucifixion.  “And the Lord turned and looked at Peter.” He then remembered the Lord’s prophecy, causing him to fall to his knees and repent.  He didn’t have to ponder why Jesus was looking at him.

Tell me, have you ever felt the Lord “look” at you?  I have.  For instance, in moments of weakness, I’ve denied knowing Him by not taking opportunities to introduce him to others.  And then I see Him “looking” at me with His words -– “whoever is ashamed of Me … whoever denies Me” (Mark 8:38; Matthew 10:33).

My precious Lord Jesus, as I walk with You through this Easter week, I marvel at Your finished work on the Cross.  Everything You did glorified Father God by Your obedience to Him.  I see how important it is that I not only be looking at Your words in Scripture, but that I humble myself to be looked at by You, that You tenderize my sometimes stubborn and weak heart to be obedient to You, to be repentant of my sins, knowing that You are faithful and just to forgive me.  I know why You are looking at me.  It is to prompt me to obedience by pointing others to You alone for forgiveness of sins and to be reconciled to the Father. How I look forward to an eternity spent with You under Your merciful and loving gaze.

WHATEVER YOU DO ...

My mother was born with artsy-crafty genetics on steroids. No object is safe from her bedazzling, sewing, or painting talent. Numerous attempts were made by both of us to activate my own gene, but it soon became apparent that mine was dead on arrival. It also became apparent that, as a teenager, I needed, what’s the word ... oh yeah, motivation! I had a tendency to do things halfway. If at all. I believe the biblical definition is “sluggard.”

This was probably mom’s motivation decades ago in presenting me with her wee painted rock emblazoned with “do it right.” She figured I’d carry it with me for the rest of my life and become encouraged to be sluggardly no longer. I have indeed carried it with me. Sad to say, the admonition to do things completely and correctly didn’t kick in until a few decades later. 
I’ve recently noticed several t.v. commercials pushing the idea that doing things halfway is never a good idea. I suspect the marketing directors’ moms were behind this. Offering a rain-drenched person half an umbrella, or painting only half the house, is rather obvious slothfulness. Diagnosing a problem, but not fixing it, such as a dentist telling a patient that he has a really bad cavity, then walking away, is downright cruel. Or telling homeowners that their house is infested with termites, but too bad, you’re on their own! The lesson is that people must be willing to do things completely, to do things right!
Mom’s desire that I not be a sluggard finally found its way into me via Scripture. Once the Lord saved me, I found it very comforting to know that Jesus was never a sluggard, that He didn’t have to be prodded and reminded by His Father “to finish the work” given Him (John 4:34). He didn't just diagnose our sinfulness, and then tell us, "you're outta luck, bye-bye!"  On the cross, when He said, “It is finished” (John 19:30), His work was complete and it was right. Salvation was secured at that moment, to God’s glory.
My Jesus, how I thank You that You set Your face to do what You came to do. In Scripture, and by Your eternal life, You are an example for me. I’ve learned that whatever my hand finds to do, I’m to do it with all my might; that whatever I do, do my work heartily, as for the Lord; and that I not be lacking in diligence, serving You (Ecclesiastes 9:10; Colossians 3:23; Romans 12:11). I praise and thank You, that everything You do throughout all eternity is right.

STOP, DROP, AND ROLL

Recently, as I walked through a parking lot, I was entranced by someone else’s unusual display of disobedience. A car pulled into a parking space with a large sign specifically designating that this space was for the convenience of pregnant women. And when the car doors opened, 4 teenage boys emerged. I must say, I’m quite proud of myself for not chasing them down to ask when their “due date” was. I also wondered if they perpetually ignored signs on the roadways. Scary, scary thought.

It has been many decades (5 exactly) since I first learned the rules of the road in high school Driver’s Ed. As every one of us knows, there are certain behaviors expected by those who bestow driver’s licenses upon us. Mostly, the directional signs are not that difficult to comprehend. “YIELD” means slow down and watch out. A picture of a BICYCLE means do not run over the helmet-headed bicycler. And “STOP” means ... stop! There are 2-way stops, 4-ways stops, stop-then-proceed, but there’s no getting around it, it means stop.

The most intense sign I observed recently demands: STOP, WRONG WAY, DO NOT ENTER. And instantly, it occurred to me -- Scripture is loaded to the brim with the Lord’s loving warnings, to beware, watch out, don’t indulge in “deeds of the flesh” (Galatians 5:19-21). Don’t go there! Why? Not to ruin all my fun, but because ignoring His “signs” can trip me up in my walk with Him, because it causes me to be a bad ambassador, because it doesn’t glorify Him.

More often than not, Christ’s big warning against anxiety (Matthew 6:25-34) is often the biggest problem for me. It is so incredibly easy to dwell on the past, which is anxiety in reverse. It’s easy to fixate on possible trauma in the future. And yet, He says, if you’re about to worry, don’t start. If you’re already worrying, STOP. Just knock it off, don't go there!

I work well with visuals. So this particular STOP sign in my mind’s eye has proven to be very effective. But I’ve learned to take it a couple of steps further. Thankfully, I’ve never found myself on fire. But we’ve all heard of the infamous “Stop, Drop, and Roll” maneuver to extinguish flames. STOP running, DROP to the ground, and ROLL around, thus quenching the flames.

So now, when I find myself in danger of being “on fire” with anxiety, envy, anger, whatever my flesh decides is fun, I STOP. Then I DROP to my knees in prayer, confession, repentance, and praise to my Lord and Savior Who took these very sins upon Himself. And finally, I ROLL ... in His grace, mercy, love, forgiveness, and yes, even His necessary discipline.

My loving and compassionate Father, “You are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head” (Psalm 3:3). I thank You for the permanent gift of the Holy Spirit causing me to want to be obedient to Your warning signs. And I am daily thankful for Your Word as my “instruction manual” to drive through my life in a way that is pleasing and glorifying to You.  

WHO CAN KNOW?

 

If there’s one thing that I definitely know about life, it’s that there are many things I don’t know, such as, where I put my glasses or cellphone that I just had a minute ago. I don’t know how to do taxes. I don’t know why my computer freaks out. I don’t know why cats are sometimes insane. And I’ll never know why my husband thinks that bacon-wrapped brussel sprouts are tasty, when everybody knows that chocolate-wrapped fruit is heaven sent.

And speaking of heaven ... because my earthly life is stuffed to the brim with mostly mundane daily trivia, and occasional life-altering surprises, the older I get, the more I’m inclined to be eagerly looking up. And at the same time, I feel very sad that hoards of people don’t know, don’t want to believe, what happens after they die. Simply put, they don’t want to know or believe God, who He is, and His promises (Jeremiah 9:23-24).

I myself used to have a shaky belief in a generic “god” out there, but he (or she or it) must certainly be apathetic about earthlings. I sorta knew that Jesus existed, that He was a good guy. But I didn’t spend any time in the Bible, because I preferred to read anything other than Scripture. Mostly, I believed in reincarnation, that I alone decided the course of my own life (and future lives). And I was pretty sure that everything somehow all worked out in the end and every single person would live in a paradise of his/her own making. I knew the Bible said that Jesus had resurrected, but somehow it was easier to believe in self-reincarnation than God-ordained resurrection. I sneered much.

Then one day, in His perfect timing, my God saved me. And I know why. Because He loved me first (1 John 4:19). He turned my twisted self-oriented thinking into straightforward faith in Him. He humbled me and caused me to see my sinful nature that rebelled against His perfect holiness, caused me to confess and repent of sin, caused me to crave His Word alone, and caused me to know Who His Son really is. He gave me an anchor-solid understanding that Jesus wasn’t just a nice fella who was born, did nice things, died an un-nice death, and maybe resurrected.

I also began to see myself in Scripture, that I had been like the “religious” people who “sneered” when hearing of the resurrection (Acts 17:22, 32). I had been like the disciple Thomas who refused to believe what he hadn’t yet seen (John 20:27-30).

In my suddenly pervasive reading of Scripture, it became clear that the Lord Jesus spoke of resurrection often. And not just His own resurrection, but His promise to raise up every believer (John 5:28-9). He wanted me to know, without any doubt, that I could trust His promises because I could trust Him. My soul soared to read His words, “I go to prepare a place for you, ... I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also” (John 14:2-3). He has promised that I will be caught up together with other believers in the clouds to meet Him in the air, “and so we shall always be with the Lord” (1 Thessalonians 4:16-18). What comforting words!

Knowing a few facts about Jesus in my head just wasn’t enough. I had to believe, to know in my heart that He is the only Way to heaven, He is the only truth, and He is the eternal Life (John 14:6). I will be resurrected, in God’s perfect time (John 6:40, 47; 1 Corinthians 15:22, 44, 49), to live with Him eternally.

I’m not to trust or believe in my own allegedly wise eyes, “but in God who raises the dead” (2 Corinthians 1:9). Jesus said, “He who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25-26).

My God, I know that You keep Your promises and You do not lie. My Jesus, You and the Father are one. I can, and I do, believe Your promises to me. This Easter, I fall on my knees and thank You, that You died on my behalf to reconcile me to my God. And I celebrate Your resurrection, oh-so eagerly looking forward to The Day when all in Your church will be with You eternally, to the glory of God.

I believe all of this, and I know there is no ? to eternity.