Scripture

“The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone? Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, but he on whom it falls will be crushed.” Luke 20:17-18

Observation
A person must be rocked to come to Jesus. We want to avoid the stumbling stone because we want so very much to be a whole person to come to Christ. We want to present ourselves at our best with every ability sharpened and shined ready for his inspection. But the Lord Jesus Christ will not accept anyone in pristine presentation. That spit and polish is not of him; that kind is all of us. He will have none of self-righteousness. Instead Jesus offers to rock us to come to him.

We avoid this first step in coming to Christ because we don’t value what he values. The Lord cherishes broken pieces and if nothing else is available he will settle for the pulverized dust left over from our stupidity. Broken people are what the Lord wants and so he gives to each of us the gift of setbacks, hardships, disappointments, frustrations, embarrassment, and so on to get us into shape to be remade by him.

There are only two choices to come to Christ: either to be broken or to be pulverized. The Lord prefers the first option for us. That involves us stumbling over the person of Christ and being broken by the discovery. Jesus is the only man who is fully human for his life has fully pleased God. We will always think ourselves competent and complete until we find him.

But if we somehow manage to slip by Jesus or to dust ourselves off and rush on into foolishness then eventually the rock will fall on us and pulverize us. On the other side of Jesus are consequences. If we will not face up to Christ we will meet others who will force us to meet up with ourselves. Hopefully those encounters will bring us back to Christ.

Application
I’m a normal human; I cherish my “together” moments. They are the diplomas on my walls and pictures on my shelves. But Jesus does not cherish these as much as the memory of my need for him. My brokenness is beautiful to him for then he can do what he does best: be a Saviour.

Prayer
Father, your Son is a Saviour and I need saving, so we make a wonderful combination. I need your help. I will not even bother to dust myself off. Just as I am I come to you. Amen.

Scripture
“But the tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow, saying, ‘O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.’ I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home justified before God. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” Luke 18:13-14

Observation
My dad was a university professor with tons of experience watching students. He told me before my first college class, “Don’t sit in the back row where the students talk. Sit at the front so you can listen.” He was right. Front rows have been a life habit of mine. But Jesus tells me something different today. There are times it pleases God to sit in the back.

The tax collector “stood at a distance” and was closest to God. He, and not the preacher on the front row, was the example to follow.

Application
I wonder how often I walk into church with a sense that I belong there. I grew up in the church. My dad was a pastor. I’m a pastor. It’s all very familiar, maybe too familiar. What would happen if I stopped at the back and pondered my inadequacy.

In the Parliaments of the British Commonwealth there is at the entry doors a bar placed across the open doorway. In the Queensland State Parliament, where I lived in Brisbane, there is a golden bar across the doorway. Visitors are called “strangers” and if a non-member of parliament is invited to speak he maybe asked to stand behind the bar and address parliament at a distance.

Maybe we need to put a bar across the doorway, not of church, but across the threshold of every life entry. When we walk into the office, or the boardroom, or the classroom, or the restaurant or even our own homes, it would be good if we paused and reflected on our unworthiness and Christ’s full sufficiency. Everything is better than we deserve. That is the nature of mercy. That hesitation to pause to acknowledge our sinfulness and need of a Saviour could make all of the difference.

Prayer
Father, the only ticket of entrance I have into heaven or your presence is my confession that I am a sinful person. Have mercy on me. And let me seek that mercy at every entry point of life, for I am unworthy of it all. Everything is better than I deserve. Amen.

Every Season by Nichole Nordeman

Scripture
She kept his cloak beside her until his master came home. Then she told him this story: “That Hebrew slave you brought us came to me to make sport of me. But as soon as I screamed for help, he left his cloak beside me and ran out of the house.” Genesis 39:16-17

The chief cupbearer, however, did not remember Joseph; he forgot him. Genesis 40:23

So Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, “It is not in me; God will give Pharaoh an answer of peace.” Genesis 41:16 (NKJ)

Observation

Joseph had a dream planted in his heart by the Lord. It was more than just an idea that Joseph had for his life. It was a plan that God has for him. That dream was like a seed buried deep in him. One day, in right conditions, that seed would grow. Meanwhile, that seed would need to remain hidden from view under prison clothes deep in his heart.

There were people that God put into Joseph’s life who made holding onto dreams difficult.

He first met the Dream Taker, Mrs. Potiphar. When she couldn’t steal his dream with her swinging hips she turned to purgery. Because Joseph made the right choice, she could snatch his cloak but she could not steal his dream. Sometimes we have to leave our reputation in the hands of others so we can hold onto the dream God has given to us.

Then Joseph met the Dream Faker, Mr. Cupbearer. Joseph showed genuine concern for his injustice, and gave him a great gift of hope. But words were forgotten and all the promises made were never delivered. There are many people in life who will promise opportunity and never deliver. Networking is a remarkable advantage in life. God can use it to open doors. But there are many who never deliver. Their lack of performance does not in any way hinder the power of a God-given dream. A true dream can survive disappointment.

The only reason Joseph’s story survives nearly 4,000 years later is because he met the Dream Maker, the Lord himself. As David Seamonds said, “Joseph was in prison but he did not let prison get into Joseph.” The last two years of waiting were the most important. Marinating in disappointment, Joseph never let it mutate into discouragement. Instead he came to the conclusion that he had been given a God given dream, which only the Lord could fulfill if he would so choose to do. His first public words tell it all: So Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, “It is not in me; God will give Pharaoh an answer of peace.” He now knew that God alone could fulfill dreams.

We built our first house with the rustic feel of a ski lodge. Strewn about the job site were many left over blocks of timber. One hefty chunk of wood lay sunk in a mud puddle. I had walked around it many times, until the day came to craft the mantle piece. I needed a nice, thick slab of Cyprus pine to do the job. When I measured I found that the only one to fit the bill was the muddy beam in the puddle. I cleaned it up and went to work with my planer and router. Once the outer husk was peeled away, the beauty of heart of the wood sang out. With a sand and shine I fixed the mantle on top of the fireplace as the feature of the room. Just as mud could not deter the purpose of that board, so too disappointments from Dream Takers and Dream Fakers cannot inhibit God from working his purposes out through us.

Application
I could give some names for Dream Takers and Dream Fakers in my life. But I know there is a Dream Maker watching over me. He has surprised me before and he will likely do so again…when the time is right.

Prayer
Father, you alone interpret dreams. Fulfill through me what you have placed deep inside of me. Amen.

Bethany Dillon “Dreamer” 

Scripture
Then God said to Jacob, “Go up to Bethel and settle there, and build an altar there to God, who appeared to you when you were fleeing from your brother Esau.” Genesis 35:1

Observation
My dad is a creature of habit. I’m like him too. He’s like the milkman’s horse who knows the road so well that he needs never be directed. but change the road and he will be in trouble. That’s what happened when the city put in a new overpass through the familiar streets. It disturbed his mental map. The only way he knew how to get a sense of direction was to drive back to my grandmother’s house and find his way from there. When Grandma G saw dad’s car turning around in the driveway she knew he had lost his way home.

The road map of life can change. There are confusing twists and turns. Sometimes when we are hopelessly lost and cannot find our destination, the best thing to do is to return back to where our journey began. From the starting place we can get our bearings and find our way.

Jacob closed the circle of his life journey by going back to Bethel. Years before he had spend a tossing and turning night sleeping beside the road on a rock. There God had spoken to him with a dramatic dream of angels and a stairway to heaven. Decades later, now a widower with 12 sons he again needed to find his way. This time he was not running, he was following the Lord. The road was the same but he was a different man because of it.

The days before, his sons had picked a fight with the local residents. In fact they had committed genocide against an entire town. Jacob was scared and confused. So he went back to start, back to the place where angels came and God spoke to him.

Application

There are places on this planet that hold the marks of ladder feet where God descended from heaven and spoke to us. When confused we need to return there. My dear counselor friend, Larry Gillis, will always ask me in a time of confusion, “Phil, when was Jesus last real to you and what did he say?” It is a call back to start.

From Bethel Jacob would journey many places. In fact his family would not be together again for several more decades later in the land of Egypt under much different circumstances. It is unlikely that he would have found God’s way had he not returned back to “Go!”

Prayer
Father, returning back to Start is not a punishment; it is part of your guidance. Sometimes you lead me backward to take me forward. So this day to follow you I return back to where I started from and ask that you would show me your way. Amen.