OnFire #353 All is Well

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #353 All is Well

The Canadian Thanksgiving long weekend has given me some time to remove a few more things from my winter prep list. The camper is covered and stored for the winter. The garden hose has been drained. The storage shed has been rearranged so the snow blower is closest to the door. Speaking of the snow blower, it fired up immediately. The engine oil level is good and the tires are inflated. Deep down inside I felt a warmth of contentment knowing that all is well and ready for winter.  

As I thought about how good that contentment felt, I wondered if it was even a small measure of what God felt at creation. 

In Genesis 1, we read that after God created on the third, fourth, and fifth days, He saw that it was good. And after the sixth day when God created humanity, He saw that is was very good. I think these are statements 1) of the quality of God’s creative handiwork, and 2) about His sense of accomplishment and contentment with the end result. I think God had the feeling that all is well.

The world we live in now is much different from the one God originally created. Some of God’s creative handiwork was undone when Adam and Even fell to temptation. We don’t enjoy perfect health, relationship troubles plague humanity, we’re messing up the environment, loss is common, injustice seems everywhere. We are all affected by these things and often the result is fear, worry, anxiety, a sense of being unsettled.  

And so, when we experience these times of contentment and wonderment, we need to be thankful. First of all, it feels good. But more than that, they are signs to us that it won’t be this way forever. Just as God brought order out of formlessness and emptiness in Genesis, God will once again restore paradise. That’s the picture we have at the end of the Bible. God will not leave the world the way it is forever. He sent Jesus to deal with our sin problem on the cross, and when Jesus returns all will be restored. In this way, contentment is a sign of creation, and re-creation.

"Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be any curse…." (Revelation 22:1-3)*

I hope and pray you experience these times of peace and contentment, at least once in a while. Let’s always be thankful for them, for they are reminders of the promise that there are better days ahead. 

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis.  Married  to Jan, Troy is a chaplain and has more than 20 years of pastoral experience. This letter published Oct 11, 2017. *New International Version. To subscribe, unsubscribe, or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com

OnFire #352 The Value and Dignity of All Humanity

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #352 The Value and Dignity of All Humanity

Wind – it is a constant here in Manitoba. I can’t decide whether it is windier here or back home in the Maritimes. Several times I have gone running and almost tripped as the wind caught my feet. How is it that I can go for a bike ride and it be against the wind in both directions?

It has been a few weeks since events in Charlottesville. In case you missed it, do a quick Google search.

The news cycle has moved on, and sadly we see the devastation of flooding in Houston and India. Please pray for these and other folks.

Even still, Charlottesville has been on my mind. So much has been said and written it feels like a mighty wind blowing – not a hurricane, but dangerous still. So much has only added to the storm of words.  But I wanted to draw us back to the still, calm voice of the One who can best guide us so that we are not blown back and forth on whatever wind comes our way. This OnFire is a little longer than others, and more didactic, but I tried to keep it condensed.

The Dignity and Worth of All Humanity

All people regardless of race, nationality, social status, and sex, have value and dignity. This is the principle we find in scripture from the very beginning.

Genesis 1:26-27

Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness...

So God created mankind in his own image,

    in the image of God he created them;

    male and female he created them.

There are some simple things we can take from these verses. First, humans bear the image of God. That is, we have qualities and characteristics which mirror qualities and characteristics of God.  Theologians debate what this exactly means, but qualities like creativity and a sense of justice are part of this.

Next, there is no qualification for race or nationality. All humanity bears the image of God.

Finally, there is no exception for male or female. Both bear the image of God. There is something about being male that reflects the image of God, and something about being female which bears the image of God.

All humans bear the image of God, regardless of race or sex. This is important - we cannot look at someone different from us and see anything less than another person who bears the image of God, just as we do.

This is the foundation for the dignity and worth of ALL people

God’s Concern for the Foreigner / Alien / Stranger

The dignity and worth of all people is repeated and reinforced in scripture.

Exodus 20:10

…but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns.

With regard to the Sabbath, God not only commanded rest for the Hebrew people, but also for the immigrants. It would have been easy for the Hebrews to be legalistic and have the resident aliens do the work instead.  But this violates the principle of the value and dignity of all people. Rest was for everyone, not just one particular group. Notice also the protections for age, sex, and nationality.

Provision for the Poor and Vulnerable

The principle of the dignity and value of all people is once again demonstrated in scripture as we see God’s provision for the poor and the newcomer. While our instinct says to look after our own first and foremost, there must be provision for the poor and vulnerable because all have value and dignity.

Leviticus 19:10

Do not go over your vineyard a second time or pick up the grapes that have fallen. Leave them for the poor and the foreigner. I am the Lord your God.

Leviticus 23:22

When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. Leave them for the poor and for the foreigner residing among you. I am the Lord your God.

I notice several things here. God did not declare that all the resources would be held for the Hebrews alone. This kind of protectionist instinct is not present in these verses.

There is a personal cost to kindness and compassion. By not harvesting absolutely everything, there was less for the farmers. Kindness sometimes comes with personal cost, but we trust in God to provide also for our needs.

When we demonstrate kindness and compassion, we mirror God’s character of love.

God’s Concern for Justice for All

There is to be no separate system of justice - all are to be treated with dignity and value. In fact, God is especially concerned if we ill-treat or abuse people, all the more so if we take advantage of them when they are vulnerable. This is a matter of justice, and we see it in the Bible. God will ultimately extend justice where there is oppression and abuse.

Here is a very short sample of passages demonstrating God’s concern for justice for all. There are so many more in the Bible.

Psalm 94

The Lord is a God who avenges.

    O God who avenges, shine forth.

2 Rise up, Judge of the earth;

    pay back to the proud what they deserve.

3 How long, Lord, will the wicked,

    how long will the wicked be jubilant?

4 They pour out arrogant words;

    all the evildoers are full of boasting.

5 They crush your people, Lord;

    they oppress your inheritance.

6 They slay the widow and the foreigner;

    they murder the fatherless…

Jeremiah 22:3

This is what the Lord says: Do what is just and right. Rescue from the hand of the oppressor the one who has been robbed. Do no wrong or violence to the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow, and do not shed innocent blood in this place.

Ezekiel 22:29

The people of the land practice extortion and commit robbery; they oppress the poor and needy and mistreat the foreigner, denying them justice.

From these and other passages we understand that true justice does not regard  nationality, socio-economic status, or sex. In this we see the value and dignity of all people.

Salvation is Available to ALL

Galatian 3:26 -28

So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

Salvation is not limited to a particular group. The availability of salvation to all indicates the value and dignity of all humanity.

Concrete Action

This is just a small smattering of passages I could have referenced. I would love to hear from you other indications of the value and dignity of all people we find in scripture. I know there are more.

I don’t want to leave us here, however. I see some concrete actions we can take in light of what we find in scripture about this topic.

1) We must examine our own hearts and motives.  Where there is hatred and prejudice in our own hearts, we must recognize it and repent.

2) We must love our neighbours. Sacrificially. Scripture has lots to say about this.

Most of us will never be in a spot to truly influence government policy around immigration, language, refugees, or other controversial policies. So I think we waste a lot of breath and energy in outrage and endless talking. The rubber hits the road in our own neighbourhoods. What kind of neighbours will we be?

3) Pray for our leaders, regardless of their political stripes. Again, scripture is clear about this. I see a lot of Christian posts designed to criticize or discredit politicians with whom we disagree. I understand - politics is deeply felt and people are passionate.  But we are called to pray anyway, and not for their misfortune!

1 Timothy 2:1-2

I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.

Conclusion

This is not my normal type of OnFire. It is a lot longer, and more didactic. But I saw an opportunity to help us understand the foundational issues of dignity and the value of all humanity. In the end I hope it helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis.  Married  to Jan, Troy is a chaplain and has more than 20 years of pastoral experience. This letter published August 30, 2017. *New International Version. To subscribe, unsubscribe, or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #351 Going to the Birds

This year Jan and I went to the birds!

Well, we started feeding them, a little. We got some suet and a cage, and hung it from our clothesline. For those who don’t know, suet is a mixture of seeds mixed with hard fat. It took a little while, about a month, before the birds found it. Now we have a regular entourage of chickadees, finches, bluejays, magpies, and brown thrashers.

The brown thrashers are interesting. They migrate north from the southern US for the summer, and apparently have about 1000 different songs, the largest repertoire of the songbirds. Several are nesting in our lilac hedge, and we see them coming and going.

Some birds knew instinctively to perch on the cage closest to the suet in order to reach it. We watched others, however, who landed on top of the clothesline and then tried to reach the feed, without success. They simply could not bend low enough below their feet. They were so close, but so far away.

I talk with people all the time who feel this way about God. They are close, but not quite there. They want to believe, but something holds them back. For them it seems that others get the privilege, but they miss out - they’ve done too much, gone too far, turned their back for too long, and they missed their opportunity. The best they can hope for is to stand on top of the wire and watch while others feed below.

This was not so different from the situation faced by most in the Old Testament. Only the high priest could pass through the heavy curtains into the holy of holies, the innermost part of the sanctuary, while others had to be content to wait outside.

This changed with Jesus. “Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings,… “ (Hebrews 10:19-22*)

The lesson for us is that God is within reach of the ordinary person. We should not think that closeness with God is only for someone else. Rather, because of Jesus, we can all experience closeness with God.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis.  Married  to Jan, Troy is a chaplain and has more than 20 years of pastoral experience. This letter published July 9, 2017. *New International Version. To subscribe, unsubscribe, or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com

OnFire #350 Don’t Give Up at the Beginning

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #350 Don’t Give Up at the Beginning

It was a tough week of training a few weeks ago, so when Friday came my legs were already feeling tired for the LSD, or long slow distance run. I woke early, ate breakfast and hit the road. It would all be worth it in September when we do the Mountain Man race, a four-stage ironman-type competition in Edmonton.

The first km or two of a run always feels miserable as the body warms up, but I expected this to pass. Except it didn’t. My legs felt heavy like lead, made worse from bruises received on the obstacle course earlier in the week. As the GPS app on my phone signaled the fourth km, I thought I might need to turn around, to go home, and to try again another day. I was tired and achy. Maybe it was just not going to “come together.”

A voice inside nagged me: don’t give up at the beginning. I had just started, and hadn’t given it enough effort to consider stopping yet. I needed to go further. That single thought plagued me, propelled me. I pressed on until I reached a quarter, then half - I was too far from home to give up at that point, and too proud to call Jan. Finally I reached home, feeling glad I had not given up when I wanted to.

It seems to me this was a life lesson and not just for a day of running.  So many of our good intentions suffer because we did not persevere through the difficulties. We sometimes we give up too early.

I’m not particularly fond of the word perseverance. It creates mental pictures for me of pushing a big rock up a hill. Hard tiring work. All effort and little joy.

There certainly can be joy in hard work, but most often it doesn’t come until the end. The grad walks the stage. The farmer harvests the crop. The runner crosses the line.

Biblical writers encourage us not to give up. “Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.” (James 1:12*)

Don’t give up. There will be joy in the end.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

OnFire is a letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis.  Married  to Jan, Troy is a chaplain and has more than 20 years of pastoral experience. This letter published July 9, 2017. *New International Version. To subscribe, unsubscribe, or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com

OnFire #349 And the Winds Were Calmed

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #349 And the Winds were Calmed

It was fairly windy the other day, breezy as we would say back home in an understated way. It was sunny, and I would have liked to take the canoe out, but it would not have been safe to go out solo in that kind of wind. I did read a book outside for a while, but wished for shelter. There was no hiding from the wind as it eddied around the house. When I checked the 24-hour weather record, I was not surprised to discover the wind was 48km/hr, gusting to over 60. Like I said, it was a breezy day.

And then over the course of a few hours, it all changed. As I looked outside later in the day, I noticed nothing moving – no leaf on a tree, no litter in the street, no blade of grass. The wind simply dropped out. It was still outside, with only a flier caught in the fence to show that it had been windy earlier. After hiding all day, the birds came out to sing in the trees.

That it was windy was no surprise. It blows a lot here in Manitoba, and it always seems to be against you on the bicycle. More surprising though was how quickly it calmed - from stormy to still over several hours.

It made me think of times in life when our troubles were stilled. We got so used to the difficulties, it was almost hard to believe that they might end. But as I look back, that is exactly what happened. Illness. Depression. The boys’ ecoli hospitalization. Worries and woes of various kinds were calmed. It wasn’t always sudden, but one by one they became still.

Life is rarely without some kind of trouble, but these words of the Psalmist are still true:

Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble,
    and he brought them out of their distress.
He stilled the storm to a whisper;
    the waves of the sea were hushed.
They were glad when it grew calm,
    and he guided them to their desired haven.
Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love
    and his wonderful deeds for mankind.

Psalm 107:28-31*

The winds of life do not last forever. Rarely do they seem to pass as quickly as we hope, but they will end. Of this we can be sure.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis.  Married  to Jan, Troy is a chaplain and has more than 20 years of pastoral experience. This letter published Jun 13, 2017. *New International Version. To subscribe, unsubscribe, or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com

 

OnFire #348 Coffee is Proof of God’s Love

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #348 Coffee is Proof of God’s Love

Food has always been the gathering point of my family life. Every major holiday, birthdays, graduations, good times, and even bad times saw us gather somewhere for a meal. We sometimes joke that we have barely finished one meal and we are planning the next! I love to eat and it has only been through the constant effort of exercise that I don’t weigh much, much more.

Every morning I have a cup of my favourite coffee – Sumatran dark roast Swiss water process from Java Blend in Halifax. I am by no means a coffee snob - I happen to actually like instant coffee, for instance - but I know what I like most. One morning while enjoying that first sip, I commented to Jan, “Coffee is one more proof that God loves us!” I startled myself, thinking perhaps that I had just committed some sort of blasphemy by trivializing God’s grace. Or, at the very least, was I being shallow, to put too much stock in a beverage? I pondered this for some time.

My contemplation led me to the thought that God didn’t actually have to add flavour, variety, texture or colour to our food. Think about it – we only need calories and nutrients to survive. The calories are for the energy, and the nutrients replenish vitamins and minerals. The rest is extra, not strictly necessary.

So why did God do it? It is possible that one of the reasons was to bring variety to our menu. Think about how nice it is to eat different kinds of foods? I love pot luck meals for this very reason. I sometimes pick out foods at the store, even if I don’t know what they are, just for the sake of trying something new. The seasons bring different foods, also. Strawberries in the summer… I am getting hungry!

Think about the complaining that God’s people did in the wilderness when they only had manna for food. They thought it would be better to go back to slavery in order to eat fish, cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic. (Numbers 11:5) I don’t think many of us would really be all that different.

Is it possible that God also wanted to delight us? Think about discovering a new flavour, and the joy it brings. Who hasn’t found a new ice cream and wanted to finish the whole tub, or is that just me? There are spices that transport me to another place and time. Summer savoury takes me to my mother’s place, dill to my grandmothers, curry to friends. On and on I could go. Ever have a cold, and not be able to taste very well? Takes the joy out of eating, doesn’t it? My point exactly.

I don’t want to say it too lightly, but flavour is indeed proof of God’s love for us. Not on the same plane as Jesus dying on the cross for our sins. But proof nonetheless that God did something for us He did not need to do. He did not need to add variety, flavour, colour, or texture, but He did. And I think He did it to bless us and bring us delight.

So, the next time we sit down to a meal to say grace, perhaps we might be even more thankful. Not only for the fact that we have daily food, as some in our world struggle with getting enough food. But also for the variety and taste of it. We really, truly have a lot to be thankful for.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis.  Married  to Jan, Troy is a chaplain and has more than 20 years of pastoral experience. This letter published Apr 24, 2017. *New International Version. To subscribe, unsubscribe, or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com

OnFire #347 Transfiguration

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #347 Transfiguration

I have these regular moments when Jan will tell me something, and I wonder, why? And then later, it becomes clear. “I have a dentist appointment tomorrow,” means she needs the car and I must plan some other way to get around. It usually takes some time for me to connect her details to my life.

This sometimes happens when we read scripture. Why do we have that story? Why was it so important to include it? The implication to us is not always immediately clear.

The transfiguration is one of those accounts. The gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke all include the story that Jesus took Peter, James and John to a mountain in order to pray. During that event, Moses and Elijah appeared with Jesus, who was changed – transfigured – before them to display his true glory, and the voice of God the Father was heard from heaven saying, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!” (Matthew 17:5*)

The event was obviously significant, but why?

It revealed Jesus’ identity. People were always wondering who Jesus was. At the beginning of Jesus’ ministry people asked, “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?” (Luke 4:22). After performing miracles, some speculated Jesus was a prophet like John the Baptist, Elijah or Jeremiah. But a few, like Peter, began to believe that he might actually be the Messiah (Matthew 16:13-20).

The glory of the transfiguration and the voice from heaven confirmed this for Jesus’ inner circle. To be called “Son” was to identify Jesus as having the very character and nature of God the Father. The implications were incredible, because they could only either be true, or highly blasphemous. The disciples listened to Jesus and tucked this away until after the resurrection.

It highlighted Jesus’ role. The presence of Moses and Elijah suggested that the Law and the Prophets of the Hebrew scriptures looked to Jesus for fulfillment. The old must give way to the new. We’ll see this again in the Last Supper, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood” (Luke 22:20). No longer would we relate to God through the Law of the Old Testament with its sacrifices at the temple, but instead through Jesus.

It marked a turning point. Remember the voice at Jesus’ baptism? “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” (Matthew 3:17) In the same way that Jesus’ baptism marked a stepping off from his early life to his public ministry, the transfiguration marks a change in direction from his ministry to the cross. Jesus did not die because he was caught in the politics of the day. Rather, his goal from the beginning was always the cross.

This made a huge impression on the disciples. Decades later Peter wrote about the event:

“For we did not follow cleverly devised stories when we told you about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ in power, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. He received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, saying, ‘This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.’ We ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with him on the sacred mountain.” (2Peter 1:16-18)

John also reflected on that day: “We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14)

For me, the transfiguration is not just an “interesting” account, but rather provides another brick in the foundation of a stronger faith in Jesus.

It holds together. In a world which seems to be fragmenting, with alternate truths and personal realities, “truth” does not often hold together. Rather, it changes to suit the day, and sows doubt, discord, and division. But here we have the voices of the Old Testament pointing to Jesus, joined by the Heavenly Father, leading to the cross, and confirmed by the resurrection. Something in my soul relaxes, breathes deeply, in the calm reassurance of this coming together of history around the transfiguration.

This helps me. I hope it helps you. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis.  Married  to Jan, Troy is a chaplain and has more than 20 years of pastoral experience. This letter published Feb 27, 2017. *New International Version. To subscribe, unsubscribe, or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com