Most mornings Doug and I read (well, he reads to me while I drink my coffee and try to wake up) selections from a couple of books of daily readings. Every day is full of good stuff, though I may not be fully awake enough to appreciate it all. But I must have been wide awake this morning, because it was so good that I wanted to post it up for you. It’s from C.S. Lewis (A Year with C. S. Lewis, Daily Readings from His Classic Works) called “Love Your Neighbour as Yourself.” It’s really supposed to be read on July 25, but we press on. It’s a quotation from Mere Christianity. (Don’t be confused by the British spellings and punctuation. It’s the way they do it over there.) Here it is:
Well, how exactly do I love myself?
Now that I come to think of it, I have not exactly got a feeling of fondness or affection for myself, and I do not even always enjoy my own society. So apparently ‘ Love your neighbour’ does not mean ‘feel fond of him’ or ‘find him attractive’. I ought to have seen that before, because, of course, you cannot feel fond of a person by trying. Do I think well of myself, think myself a nice chap? Well, I am afraid I sometimes do (and those are, no doubt, my worst moments) but that is not why I love myself. In fact it is the other way round: my self-love makes me think myself nice, but thinking myself nice is not why I love myself. So loving my enemies does not apparently mean thinking them nice either. That is an enormous relief. For a good many people imagine that forgiving your enemies means making out that they are really not such bad fellows after all, when it is quite plain that they are. Go a step further. In my most clear-sighted moments not only do I not think myself a nice man, but I know that I am a very nasty one. I can look at some of the things I have done with horror and loathing. So apparently I am allowed to loathe and hate some of the things my enemies do.”
Back when I was learning how to lead a Bible study (before I was married), I remember a little booklet my father-in-law wrote called “Too Many Opinions.” It’s been a while since I read it, but you can read it on his blog (as I linked above). It discusses how easy it is to get off the point in a Bible study, and rather than looking at the clear meaning of the text before us, we can lurch into “Well, I think it is saying….” or “I think it means….” etc. The point was to not ask, “What do you think this means?” but rather to ask a question that could be answered by looking at the text. Continue reading ‘Opinions’
Things happen. Unexpected things happen. Hard things happen. Life is funny that way. So, how do we react when tough things happen? We should view it the way the Bible tells us to view it. This is a test. God sends His children pop quizzes and tests from time to time to see if we are learning our lessons, if we are paying attention, if we are reading our assignments.
If we view unexpected events as tests from a loving Father, we know how to proceed because we all know how to take tests. We have done our homework. We can roll up our sleeves and try to ace the test. Unless we’ve been dozing in class, not doing our homework, and spacing out during the lectures. In that case, we need to repent, and then we need to get back on task.
Life is full of trials and tests. We are told to count them all joy. If we’ve been learning our lessons, and the pop quiz comes unexpectedly (like all pop quizzes do), we are prepared. And it’s a whole lot easier to count it all joy when we meet various trials (and tests) when we are prepared.
When was the last time that you thought of jewelry and hair when someone mentioned the topic of modesty? Apparently both the Apostle Paul and the Apostle Peter thought of those two things, as well as clothing, when admonishing the women to keep it reeled in.
Paul writes in 1 Timothy 2: 9 that women ought to “adorn themselves in modest apparel, with propriety and moderation….” and he specifically mentions the flagrant violations: “not with braided hair or gold or pearls or costly clothing…”
Then Peter has the same three things in mind when he tells the women to remember they are supposed to be pretty on the inside, not just on the outside: “Do not let your adornment be merely outward—arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel…” (1 Peter 3:3).
When we think of adorning ourselves modestly and with a gentle and quiet spirit, it means we have thought through more than just our clothes. We’ve considered our hairstyle and our jewelry as well. What does the world want us to do with our hair? What does the world want us to do with jewelry? These things apparently matter because we have two apostles mentioning all three things in two different passages addressed to women.
When we think world-viewishly about music and literature and marriage and children, that is good. But we must not neglect to work it into these other areas as well. What is the world trying to get us to wear? Why? What do these things mean? What does God think about them? Why does the world care? The world wants to get Christian women to wear whatever the current uniform is for hair, jewelry, and clothing. Chances are always pretty good that said uniform will not be modest (or appropriate or moderate). God wants us to wear something else.
Some weeks ago I was visiting with a friend who was worrying over something that could possibly happen in her future. As we were talking about it, I was trying to be encouraging and helpful, so I said something like, “Don’t worry! God will never give you….” and she finished the sentence, “….more than I can handle. I know.”
On my way home I realized that I had said something very stupid and untrue. I know that God has promised to never leave us or forsake us; He has promised no temptation will ever be so bad that we can’t escape. But He never promised not to give us more than we could handle. In fact, He gives us more than we can handle all the time. If He didn’t, then we would not need to lean on Him for grace and strength. Paul learned how to be content because God gave him more than he could handle many times over. But Paul learned to trust God, and he learned contentment in plenty and in Continue reading ‘God Will Never Give You More….’
Forgiveness is straightforward, but the issues related to forgiveness certainly have layers. We are to forgive 70 x 7 times, but that does not mean the relationship will look the same at forgiveness #1 as it does at forgiveness # 499. Sin is the destroyer of relationships. And forgiveness can be extended, yes, but there will still be consequences. Sometimes the consequences include divorce, broken friendships, or just a distance where there was once closeness. The Bible says that we are to be at peace with all men, as far as is possible with us. Sometimes, no matter what we may try to do, or what we actually do in forgiveness, it is simply impossible.
For example, if you keep getting shellacked, then you should move out of range. This is just common sense. It is our Continue reading ‘Forgiveness and Broken Friendships’
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