What Would Superman Do?

                I think all of us have tasted injustice at some point. It seems that everywhere I look in our Western culture I see people crying out for justice. There has been a recent string of popular super hero movies that hold a heavy emphasis on justice. There are several TV series that show people seeking after justice by breaking the law (Leverage, Arrow). Music often emphasizes overcoming the injustice of society in order to rise to the top of the social latter. The public is in an uproar because professional athletes are not receiving punishment for their crimes. Furthermore, our courts are flooded with individuals trying to receive justice for something that has happened to them.  It is natural to want to see good deeds rewarded and bad deeds punished.

                At the end of Matthew 18, Jesus gives us a very powerful parable involving injustice. He explains that there was a slave that owed his master a whole lot of money. His master said it was time for the slave to pay up and the slave begged the master not to make him pay. He did not have the money and begged the master for more time. The master felt bad for the slave so he forgave his debt and sent him on his way. The forgiven slave then goes to collect some money owed him from another slave. The amount of money the forgiven slave is owed is much less than he owed his master. The fellow slave could not pay him the money and begged for more time. The forgiven slave did not forgive the debt as his master had forgiven him, he did not even give the slave more time. Instead, the forgiven slave had his fellow slave thrown into jail until he could pay his debt. When the master found out that this had happened, he had the forgiven slave handed over to the jailers to be tortured until he could pay the full amount that he had previously been forgiven for. Jesus then says that the Father will do the same thing to us if we do not forgive one another.

                It is not wrong to wish for justice, but it is wrong to assume that we are in charge of delivering it. If I stop to remember how much God has forgiven me, I cannot hold someone else responsible for what they have done to me. I often wish for justice until I read this parable and remember what justice I deserve. Who have I not forgiven lately? Who do I hold responsible for something small in comparison to what I owe the Lord that He has forgiven me?

                God, I am so glad that I am not responsible for handing out justice. Please reveal to me any unforgiveness in my heart and give me the strength to forgive. Help me to trust You to carry out justice and know that I am pardoned only by Your mercy. Thank You for Your mercy. Amen.

The Good ol' Days

                My husband and I are blessed with a very happy and beautiful son. Because of this, we cannot seem to go anywhere without getting a lot of attention. When we go to family gatherings, our son seems to be the star of the show. When we go to church, everyone wants to see the baby and look at how happy he is. We cannot go through the grocery store without being stopped at least three or four times by strangers who want to see our child. As parents, my husband and I are filled with pride because of this and our boy loves the attention! Being the youngest in my family, I remember being the object of all of that attention when I was a child and I became very prideful. I thought I was the prettiest and sweetest little girl in the world because of how much I was loved!

                In Matthew 18, the disciples ask which one of them will be the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven. At first this seems like a very prideful question (and it is), but it also seems that finally the disciples are focusing on the Kingdom of God rather than what is happening on earth. Jesus then pulls over a child and says whoever humbles himself like a child is the greatest, but I was not humble as a child at all. I realize now that there it is easy to misread this passage as an American born in the late 1900 because of the differences in culture between now and then.

                In American culture today, we often elevate children in society. As we get older, we try to look younger. The majority of marketing is targeted at children between the age of 14 and 21. We consider adolescence to last from ages 11 to 21 and most people consider their “prime” in life to be some point in their 20s. We view getting older as something to be avoided as long as possible. In Jesus’ culrue, on the other hand, elders were considered to be the “prime” of society. There was no such thing as “adolescence” at that time. What we consider to be teenagers, they considered to be young adults who could start contributing to society. Children were not elevated as they are in our culture, but were considered to be unwise and not nearly as skilled or useful as adults. Children had not yet earned the right to make their opinions known and did not assume they knew more than someone else or were better at something than someone else because they were the least experienced.

                When Jesus used the example of a child, He was telling the disciples not to think of themselves as better than anyone else. He was letting them know that they should not ask who is the greatest because they should not be assuming they are better than anyone. I wonder then, who do I think I am better than? Who do I always assume I am wiser than? If I know something that someone else does not know, do I assume that I am smarter than that person and do I really have the right to assume that? I want to change my thinking and get away from asking the question “Who is greater?” and instead see God’s purpose in each interaction I have with other people.

                God, please help me to keep my heart humble and not compare myself to other people. Help me to use the time I spend with others to accomplish Your purpose rather than fill my heart with pride. Thank you for Your patience with me as I work to humble myself. Amen.

Sword against Sword

                This past week, my husband and I have done are best to remind each other how much we love each other. We have been giving spontaneous gifts to one another, planning romantic activities, and taking time out of each day to talk about our feelings and appreciate each other. We have been trying to live each day in the presence of God and do the work He has for us. After this wonderful week, we met on the wrong terms last night. We had both been beat down by our days and had no energy to try to be strong for one another and ended in a huge argument about nothing. Feelings were hurt, tears were shed, and neither of us ended up getting much sleep. After some apologies, we finally ended the night and up this morning to face the world again.

Matthew 17 tells a very interesting story about Jesus calling Peter, James, and John up to a mountain. On the top of the mountain, away from everyone else, Jesus is transformed and joined by Elijah and Moses. Peter suggest that they build tents to stay on the mountain that night, but the presence of God comes down on them like a cloud and the three disciples become afraid. When they finally lift their heads, only Jesus is standing before them and He leads them back down the mountain. Jesus instructs the three disciples not to tell anyone about what happened until after He was raised from the dead. Not too much longer after this vision, Peter denied even knowing Jesus.

No matter how great my time with the Lord is in the morning, there always comes a time when He leads me back down the mountain. I can very easily get distracted and forget everything the Lord has taught me and go about my day as if I do not ever know Him! I forget how fearful I was when I had a glimpse of His presence and act as if He has had nothing to do with my life. We are meant to live as followers of Christ even when we come down off the mountain. Jesus has given us the power to do His will and even gave us the Holy Spirit to remind us what He has taught us. If we can keep from fighting with each other and fight the battle of life together we will accomplish the work of God’s Kingdom.

God, I know that I must come down the mountain and face the world. Please help me not to forget what you have taught me. Help me to keep in mind what really matters in life and to do the work you have prepared for me. Amen.

Concerned with What?

                Do you remember at some point in your childhood someone telling you, “I’ll never let anything bad happen to you!”? Maybe not when you were a child; maybe your spouse said this to you at some point. This may have been a great comfort to you (it has been to me several times!), but every time I have heard it, part of me has wanted to take a step back and call that person a liar. No one can be sure that nothing bad will happen to another person no matter how hard they try. I will do my absolute best to protect my son as he grows, but many good parents have had something bad happen to their child through no fault of their own.

                In Matthew  16, Peter tries to say something similar to Jesus. Jesus has just predicted his own death and Peter says, “Oh no, Lord! This will never happen to you!” (Matthew 16:22b). Jesus responds by telling Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me because you’re not thinking about God’s concerns, but man’s.” (Matthew 16:23).  When we read this story knowing what happens in the end, we say with Jesus, “No, no Peter! He has to die on the cross so he can be raised!” but Peter is just doing what we do all the time. He is telling someone he loves that nothing bad will ever happen to him, but Jesus does not allow this lie to continue. Instead Jesus gives us the very comforting truth that God uses the bad in this life for the good of the overall purpose. Jesus is standing on the truth that no matter what happens, God will give us the strength to get through it.

                I pray that God will continue to teach me to stand on this truth. When bad things come in my lives, they will never catch Him by surprise. I am continually learning how to be concerned with what God is concerned with rather than what man is and it is reshaping my understanding of good and bad. As my son gets old enough to understand, I hope to teach him that I will always do my best to keep him safe, but God will succeed in using my son for the work He has prepared for him (Ephesians 2:10).  The Lord is faithful to see us through every challenge.

For the Dogs

                My son has a very sensitive stomach. Ever since he was born, he has had trouble keeping his food down. Lately we have been trying different types of formula to see if we can find something easier on his little tummy, but it does not seem to be helping. Last night when he became fussy and cranky, I first thought he was hungry. I gave him some food but he went right back to being upset. I tried different toys and things to distract him, but he was still fussing. Finally, I took him upstairs and began to rock him to see if he was tired. He was not tired but it was soothing to him regardless. After about a half hour of rocking and praying, he looked up at me and smiled and was ready to go back to playing with his toys.

                There is a passage in Matthew 15 that has confused me ever since I was a child. In this chapter, a non-Jewish woman approaches Jesus and asks Him to heal her daughter who was demon possessed. Jesus does not even acknowledge her. She pleads with Him and He finally says that He was sent for Israel and she was not worthy to receive the benefits of His presence. She makes one more testament of her faith and Jesus says that because of her faith, her daughter will be healed. The reason Jesus was approached by a non-Jewish woman is because He is in a non-Jewish area. Right after denying this woman a miracle, Jesus feeds 4,000 non-Jewish people with a few pieces of bread and fish. It does not make since!

                For years I have tried to ignore this passage in the Bible thinking that it is just a fluke of Jesus’ behavior. Maybe Matthew got the story wrong, or maybe Jesus did not mean what He said to the woman. Then I remembered my son. Jesus did not go to that region to do a lot of healings and miracles because he was responding to the souls in the region crying for something else. They were in need of a healing of the heart and mind, not the body. We know from our history classes that many pagan cultures were in the habit of following whoever came to their town and seemed to have special abilities. They would have followed Jesus in a heartbeat had He performed many miracles among them, but they would have also followed every other god that they had. When Jesus came to this area, He only gave signs where there was great faith because without that faith, He would have been just another one of the magic gods from their heavens (like many people thought Paul was years later).

                This makes me wonder, have I been asking God to solve my physical problems and ignoring my spiritual ones? Have I been asking God to do this in other people’s lives as well? God has often answered my prayers, but perhaps He was coming to do a greater work, a work that I need more even though I do not see it.

                God, please help me to remember that you are concerned with my heart and help me to keep my heart seeking after You. Please help me to never take for granted the miracles You perform in my heart every day as you give me the grace to follow You. Please continued to help my heart seek you. Amen.