Scripture
This is what the LORD says:
“Cursed is the one who trusts in man,
who depends on flesh for his strength
and whose heart turns away from the LORD.

He will be like a bush in the wastelands;
he will not see prosperity when it comes.
He will dwell in the parched places of the desert,
in a salt land where no one lives.

“But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD,
whose confidence is in him.

He will be like a tree planted by the water
that sends out its roots by the stream.
It does not fear when heat comes;
its leaves are always green.
It has no worries in a year of drought
and never fails to bear fruit.” Jeremiah 17:5-8

Observation
Trust in man. Trust in God. That is the choice. What results is either a scraggly bush in the desert or a robust tree by a flowing stream. Take your pick. The choice is yours.

The right answer is obvious, but like most clear choices in life, we don’t want that one. Even though we know it is best to trust in the Lord rather than in people, we still skip Jesus for the person next door, on our speed dial, laying next to us in bed or at a networking breakfast. It is always easier to trust the person we can see than the Lord we cannot.

Observation
The word picture of blessing for those who trust in the Lord is so graphic that it must be more than just a pretty picture. This is an invitation to us to mediate long and deep until the right choice takes over our mind. Ponder for a few moments being a tree planted by a riverbed. Think of nutrients flowing through you. Think of fruit hanging from you. That is the life of someone who trusts in the Lord alone.

Prayer
Father, break my addiction to the world I can see and release me to the world I cannot. Amen.

Scripture
“I am going to prepare a place for you. When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am.” John 14:2-3

“‘We have no idea where you are going, so how can we know the way?’” John 14:5
“‘Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.’” John 14:8

“I will not abandon you as orphans–I will come to you.’” John 14:18

“I am leaving you with a gift–peace of mind and heart…So don’t be troubled or afraid.” John 14:27

Observation
The disciples wanted to live in a state of discontent. Jesus was giving good answers, but because they weren’t what they wanted to hear, the disciples navigated toward the dustbowl of discontent.

There is some discontent that is good in life. I can feel impatient that my desk is a mess and so with discontent I clean it off. I can feel discontented with my weight and diet myself thinner.

But there is a distractive discontent. It feeds off of our reluctance to let go of one stage of life and to embrace a new paradigm of living. Stage one felt good for the disciples. God tented among them in the flesh and bones of Jesus. God was always near at hand. Stage two involved Jesus returning to the Father to be restored to the glory (that’s a whole other story). He would both prepare a forever home for them as well as send the Holy Spirit to be with them. Stage two would eventually lead to stage three where they would live forever with the Lord.

But the disciples didn’t want to give up stage one. They wanted Jesus to remain static and conditions to continue as they had for the past three years. They could not let go of one life season and step into the next.

Jesus offered them a wonderful promise. It is a promise great enough to keep me awake at night and all at the same time put me to sleep with contentment. Jesus is getting home ready and I’m going to live in his Dad’s house with Jesus my brother in a bedroom next to his forever where I will see him glowing with glory. That is an amazing promise. But it wasn’t good enough for the disciples. With their backs turned to the bright future, they looked back at old pictures of the three year road trip with Jesus. They wanted to go back to the comfort of what they had known and not to move ahead.

I know about this, because I’ve been there lots of times. One life stage gets comfortable. Familiar faces are there. And then they are gone. But there is nothing to be gained by living in a state of continual discontent, refusing to accept the Presence in the present and move on into God’s future.

We are not orphans. Jesus is with us in the Holy Spirit. We are surrounded by peace, the deep, saturating shalom of God that soaks like honey into the bread or winter sun into the bones. That is more than enough to keep us content while we wait.

Application
It’s interesting that Jesus tells the disciples to make the most of their new season.He tells the to “ask for anything in my name.” He promises that they will do “the greater works.” It makes me wonder how much potential I’ve missed in life by wanting an old season restored, rather than moving on into the next one.

Prayer
Father, today I want to fully explore the present so I may one day walk into the future that has you in it forever. Amen.

Scripture
My sheep listen to my voice, I know them, and they follow me. John 10:27

Observation
This verse could quickly become a favorite of mine, for it summarizes all that Christ asks of me. If I spend all my days exploring all the freedom of every phrase, then I will have have done all God’s will for me.

I am a sheep and I am to listen for his voice. Being a sheep simplifies life for me. I’m not to carry burdens. I am to be led. My work is to graze, rest and walk after the Shepherd. Every other duty is his. But wait, there is one important thing I must do. Listen. I must think of nothing but the grass in front of my muzzle and the voice that makes me lift my head and tilt an ear toward the Shepherd. Today as I read another long section of the Bible, I found my soul warmed with intimacy with Christ. For twenty minutes the voice has my full attention. It has been like this for 28 years. It is good that the sections are long, for it drowns out all the other voices vying for my attention. This voice is the familiar presence that has consistently been with me everywhere I’ve been in the past 33 years of knowing Christ. The voice all at once warms and warns me, feeds and leads me, and by it I know and grow. It is more than instruction, for it is the sound of the One I love. As years go by, I so long for his voice that my future in heaven is no longer a resented intrusion into my busy life but the only natural place for me to spend the rest of my existence. I cannot wait to be with Christ forever, and to add to the Voice his Face for all eternity.

The object of my life is to hear Christ say about Philip McCallum, “I know you.” To Christ alone, the door of my heart is open wide. He can explore the most intimate, tender, private, painful, joyful secret that I harbor. He can explore my ideas, my fears, my dark temptations, my delights, my relationships. It is pride for me to say “I must know Christ” if I have not first flung my soul door open wide to say, “Christ know me.” My relationship with Jesus is the most intimate friendship I know. He will know more of me than my best friend or even my wife. He will know me through and through and be my all and all. My sole object in life is to let Christ know me. Everytime I hear the knock, I am to open the door and fellowship.

Following the Shepherd is my only work to do. I cannot lead with confidence, so I will follow well. This is not just a matter of taking the best road or the shortest road as if Jesus were simply a GPS to guide me. The Christian life isn’t convenience it is relationship. Following Christ is devotion. I follow him because he loves me and I do not want to miss that love. He is everything to me. I follow him not so I might find the best way and the right destination; I follow Christ simply because I never want to lose sight of him or to live without him near me.

Application
The voice, to be known and to follow, these are the greatest demands made of me today. Sometimes I wonder that the love I feel from Christ is so favored that it seems he loves me more than others. But then I laugh and remember that everyone else on the planet who knows his love feels the same. He loves us as if there were just one of us. His love is so personal it is easy to feel he is especially fond of me. Rather, his love is personal. His gaze is so fixed on me. I could just keep talking on and on about his love for me. I will do so in heaven forever.

Prayer
Father, may my life become more simple today. Let me not be shallow but deep because you know all of me. Here I come with heart open wide and doors flung back for you to enter in. Jesus you are my all in all. Amen.

Scripture
Jesus gave them this answer: “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does. For the Father loves the Son and shows him all he does. Yes, to your amazement he will show him even greater things than these. For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son gives life to whom he is pleased to give it. John 5:19-21

Observation
I just don’t get it. Why did Jesus bother healing a man who obviously didn’t want to get well? The invalid had been laying around for 38 years on the edge of healing. In thirty-eight years the man could have figured out some way to get himself into the pool in time. But he didn’t try. He lived in the hospital to look like someone who wanted to get well, but at best it earned him sympathy from others. In most of the healing stories, sick people asked to be healed. But in this one, it is the Healer who must convince someone to ask for help.

Jesus’ reason is found in his explanation straight after the miracle. In a sea of sick people, he saw his Father at work. It was as if God’s index finger pointed out of the clouds to one cripple on a mat and said, “Here, this one.” Jesus joined in with what he saw his Dad up to. This is the secret of healthy living in a sick world. We are to walk around with eyes wide open, searching for places where Dad is at work and join him. Then, into some of the bleakest places, God will shine brightly.

Application
I must this day walk around with eyes wide open to see where the Father is working.

Prayer
Father, show me where you are working today. Help me to have a divine appointment. I want to see others made well. Amen.