The Service Engine Soon Light

Friday is my day to open and close the park in our little town. This past Friday evening, I jumped in my car and drove to the park. When I started the ignition, there were no warning lights on. I drove to the park, stopped, and got out to lock the gate. When I started the ignition again, a warning light flicked on. "Service engine soon," it said.

It was the Christmas weekend, so there was no way to "service engine soon." I parked the car and drove my old farm truck instead. Today, my mechanic will check the computer to see what kind of service my engine needs.

The red light suggests trouble is brewing in my engine, but catastrophe can be avoided. If I'm willing to heed the warning.

Therein lies the problem, doesn't it? It's easy to ignore a warning light for a few days that turn into a few weeks and finally results in a major motor problem. I firmly believe in that possibility, so I have warning lights checked.

Wouldn't it be nice if we had the same kind of warning lights for our soul? Imagine a flashing light that says, "Trouble ahead. Better rethink this decision." 

We don't, of course, have a flashing light, but, as disciples of Christ, we do have a warning system. It's called the Holy Spirit, and one of His jobs is to "convict the world concerning sin". (John 16:8)

During the last few hours with His disciples, Jesus comforted them with the promise that they would not be left alone. He would send a Helper to convict them, remind them of His words, and guide them into the Truth. We have that same Helper to convict, remind, and guide.

His warnings, spoken with a Still, Small Voice are a little like the warning light in my car. 

His whispers are a quiet direction to take note, reassess, make a course correction before we go too far. If we are willing to be still, listen, and heed his warning.

It's being still to listen that trips us up, isn't it? 

The words of a song from my childhood come to mind. "Speak to my heart, Lord Jesus. Speak that my soul may hear. Speak to my heart, Lord Jesus. Calm every doubt and fear." (B.B. McKinney)

If we will be still enough to listen, He will speak where we can hear. 

When He does, He will do more than calm our doubts and fears, He will convict us, guide us into truth, and help us make the right decisions. Every time. 

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Need a quick holiday read? Humor mixed with faith? 

Consider my e-book. The Clay Papers (lessons in being moldable in God's hands, based on a series of pottery lessons) is now available as a 99 cent ebook on Amazon. Click the link to see more. (There's a link to give it as a gift as well.)

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In case you missed any of the past week's posts, here are the links:  Finding Christmas: The Divine Paradox, and Finding Christmas: The Storm Shelter, Finding Christmas: Overcoming,  Finding Christmas: Giving Ourselves,  The Belated Christmas Letter, Living Lean, and The Sleep Goal.

The most read post of the last week: Finding Christmas: The Storm Shelter.
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#serviceenginesoonlight #StillSmallVoice #HolySpirit #disciple #Christian

Hearing in the midst of clamor

"Peter said, 'Lord, are you addressing this parable to us, or to everyone else as well?' And the Lord said, 'Who then is the faithful and sensible steward, whom his master will put in charge of his servants, to give them their rations at the proper time? Blessed is that slave whom his master finds so doing when he comes. Truly I say to you that he will put him in charge of all his possessions. But if that slave says in his heart, 'My master will be a long time in coming,' and begins to beat the slaves, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk; the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know and will cut him in pieces, and assign him a place with the unbelievers. And that slave who knew his master's will and did not get ready or at in accord with his will, will receive many lashes, but the one who did not know it, and committed deeds worthy of a flogging, will receive but few. From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more.'" (Luke 12: 40-48 NASB)

You probably know about "the best laid plans of mice and men..." I'm having a little of that today. Because I'm flying today to Portland for a writing conference, I had to get up at 4:30 and leave my house at 5 am to make my flight. Since the thought of missing my flight scares me, it's my habit to arrive at the airport in plenty of time for my flight. 

Yesterday, as I was making my final preparations, I decided that I could sleep until 4:30 and write my blog post after I arrived at the airport. It was a great idea. In theory.

I'm at the gate, surrounded by strangers who are chatting with their companions. The TV is blaring with CNN commentators waxing eloquent about the recent debates. At the same time, the overhead music is playing. There are so many words flying about, all unrelated, from so many different sources that I can't find a silent spot.

I live alone. It's quiet in my home. The "noise" I hear when I write consists of birds singing, roosters crowing, horses whinnying, the click of claws as dogs race around me.

I'd forgotten how precious silence can be until I was suddenly without it.

This morning, there's no quiet to be found. I'll write about our focus passage later, but it won't be while I'm in the midst of all this ruckus, because I need that Quiet Whisper to guide my fingers on the key board.

Hearing God's Still Small Voice in the midst of clamor is nearly impossible.

It will be a long day of flying, but I'll be looking for a quiet place later today and I'll likely write more then.

For now, look for a quiet place. A truly quiet place. Be still. Listen for the Still Small Voice of God and wait for Him until He speaks.

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I'd appreciate your prayers this week as I travel and attend the conference, make connections, and see what God has planned for me this week.

Blessings, friends. I'll write again later.

Leanna

Teach us to pray, part 58: The Holy Spirit as companion and teacher

If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?" (Luke 11:13 NASB)

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all. 2 Cor. 13:14 NASB

"I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.

But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you." (John 14:16-17, 26 NASB)

Jesus described the Holy Spirit as a helper who is with us forever. He is the Spirit of Truth and not only teaches us what we need to know but helps us to remember the words of Christ. It is our job to commit those words of Christ to memory, but the Spirit is the One who brings them to our mind at just the right time. 

When we are in a frightening situation and suddenly remember the verse we learned as children, "What time I am afraid, I will trust in Thee," (Psalm 56:3) it is the Spirit of God that has brought that truth to mind. When we remember words of Christ, it is the Spirit of God that brings them to mind. When that Still, Small Voice speaks in our heart, it is the Holy Spirit speaking in us.

If love is the characteristic that marks God the Father, and grace abounds in Jesus Christ, then fellowship, companionship is the prime characteristic of the Spirit. Jesus promised that He would not leave us alone, would not forsake us, and He did not. His Spirit remains as our constant companion and, because of that, we are never alone. 

In our heartbreak, our struggles, our trials, our loneliness, His Spirit is with us and, if we allow, will give comfort, as well as strength to persevere and overcome whatever we face. We can have that Still, Small Voice as our constant companion, and we, too, can say, "My best friend is Jesus."

God's gift of the Holy Spirit is available to us in as much measure as we need or want. Imagine that. All we have to do is ask. As we pray, then, let us ask that God's Spirit would not just work in our lives but fill us with the sweet aroma of Christ, that we might infuse our world with Him. Lord, give us the Spirit as You will, and as much of Him as we are willing to receive.

The recognition, part 4: the shocking surprise

saying, "The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed and be raised up on the third day." (Luke 9:22 NASB)

As we read this passage, it seems as if this talk of suffering and death came totally out of the blue. It must have been a shock to the disciples! Can't you imagine them going about their day with Jesus, listening to Him teach, watching Him do miracles, helping with the crowds, talking to the people, not a thought in the world about doom and gloom. Suddenly, they accompany Jesus on a brief prayer retreat, and He begins to talk about dreadful things. "I will suffer, be rejected, be killed," He tells them. They probably looked at each other thinking,"What???"

A quick perusal of Luke's gospel suggests that Jesus "sprang this" on the disciples without warning. A closer look, however, reveals an ongoing discussion that culminated in this pointed exchange. In Luke 5, the Pharisees questioned Jesus about why His disciples did not fast. "Attendants don't fast when the bridegroom is with them, but they will fast when he is taken away," He told them. He was clearly the bridegroom and the disciples were the attendants. No one seemed to notice His comment about "being taken away", but it was clear. 

In Luke 6, an account of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus turned to the disciples and said some very worrisome words. "Blessed are you when men hate you, and ostracize you, and insult you, and scorn your name as evil, for the sake of the Son of Man. Be glad in that day and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven. For in the same way their fathers used to treat the prophets. (Luke 6:22-23 NASB). Oddly enough, these prophetic words didn't seem to raise any eyebrows, but when Jesus spoke of His death in Luke 9, He was confirming and expanding lessons He had already begun to teach them, and He would soon become even more specific and detailed. 

Why does this matter? What difference does it make if Jesus had hinted at His death before or just threw it at them all at once? We don't have the benefit of Jesus in the flesh now. Instead, we have that still, small voice of the Spirit who speaks to us and instructs us. It is important to understand that Voice and not be led astray by our own vain imaginings. The Spirit of God will never contradict Scripture. If what we think we hear does not line up with Scripture, it is not likely to be from God. 

In addition, we see here that Jesus began with a brief mention of being "taken away", followed by discussion about persecution of the disciples, before He broached the subject of his death. Because He had already established a pattern, the disciples were not hearing this talk of hard times to come for the first time.

One of the ways the Spirit works is by whispering words of direction to us, then gradually increasing the intensity over time. When He finally breaks through our defenses, bystanders may view our response as sudden, but we can look back and see that He has been hard at work with us for quite some time. This is one of the reasons journaling is so helpful. When you record your impressions of how God has spoken to you, it is easy to look back and see God at work in your life over time. 

The Spirit of God speaks to all of us. It is only the ones who choose to hear who will interact with the most High God. Even those who have walked closely with the Lord may struggle with this, but remember that we serve a God who is consistent. He is consistent with His Word and consistent over time. Most importantly, even in hard times, He is consistent. He does what He has said He will do and He is consistent in repeating it, which is why knowing the Word of God is vital for recognizing His Spirit speaking. For the disciples, recognizing Jesus as Messiah was critical. Now, we must be sure we can recognize the Spirit of God. Understanding how He works and knowing Scripture are a critical part of that.  

Whether or not you know Jesus is the first question that must be answered. For us to continue in relationship with our Lord, however, we must also be able to recognize His Spirit. Do you know that Still Small Voice when it calls you?  He is calling, so open your Bible, get still, and listen. How will you answer when He calls your name?

The Thinking Chair

When I moved to the farm nearly a quarter of a century ago, there were some long-standing practices that were firmly in place and not subject to change. One of those was The Thinking Chair. As you can see, the thinking chair is an old wagon seat that is mounted on a very rustic frame. It overlooks our small lake and is nestled in the trees. 

The Thinking Chair is in a lovely spot for admiring the scenery, but that's not the best part. The number one rule about the thinking chair is that only one person can be there at a time, except by special invitation.  No exceptions. When someone is in The Thinking Chair, they can do anything they want, but NO ONE can disturb them. No phone calls. No text messages. No emails. No questions. No conversations. It was the rule when I arrived, and it has remained inviolate. It's my very favorite place in the world. 

As a physician, I've spent the last three decades on call and have been attached to one electronic communication device or another all those years. Someone always has access to me. Except in that chair. In that chair, I can set aside the cares of the world and all the words that accompany them. I can be still.  I can be silent. 

Still

Silent

Selah

How wonderful it is to have a place where the only objective is silence! It's the place where God's Still Small Voice is most audible because the clamor of the world has, for a few moments, been silenced. 

Not everyone is blessed with a rustic retreat, but there is no denying the need for a quiet place. This week, in the midst of the clamor and constant contact that surrounds you, carve out a few minutes to be still, to be silent. 

In that silence, listen. Simply silence yourself and listen. 

Selah. Pause and ponder. 

Persevering prayer (Luke 6:12)

It was at this time that He went off to the mountain to pray, and He spent the whole night in prayer to God. (Luke 6:12 NASB)

Jesus had just encountered the scribes and Pharisees. He had bested them in verbal sparring, quietly defying them when he healed the man with the withered hand on the Sabbath, and they had left the synagogue in a rage. They were plotting against Him before they were out the door. Things were heating up and the journey to the Cross was underway. 

Jesus did not waste time talking to earthly friends or family about the next step. He went to a mountain, found a quiet place, and engaged the source of all wisdom, God Himself. He went to pray, and He prayed the entire night. The Greek word translated "spent the whole night" is dianyktereuō and literally means "the entire night".  He needed wisdom, and He continued in prayer until He had the answers He needed. 

This kind of persevering prayer involves more than talking all night. It mostly involves listening. Jesus took His concerns to His Father, but He certainly listened, too. This kind of prayer is a two-way conversation with the Most High God and is the very sweetest kind of prayer. 

Sadly, our society is so rushed that most people find it difficult to be still long enough to hear what God has to say in response to what they have prayed. How satisfying is that? Not very. When your heart is burdened about a decision, why would you ask God what to do, but not stay to listen to His answer? That is not only disrespectful to God, but also foolish indeed.  

We will see that Jesus was about to make a major decision that would affect The rest of His ministry and the future of His church. He needed to be sure. When He left the mountain, He knew exactly what to do. How? He lingered until He heard. 

When you pray, do you stop after you have had your say, or linger to hear God's response? If you are not accustomed to listening for that still small voice, why not try it today. You will not likely hear an audible voice, but perhaps you will remember a Scripture reference or the very action you should take will come to mind. Regardless of how it happens, the answer you seek will come, and you will recognize it, if you are willing to be still long enough to hear. 

Today, pray for the longing in our hearts to become listening prayers with the willingness to be still and not just know He is God, but hear Him answer. Pray that our loved ones would cease striving and turn the the Only One with the answers they seek. 

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Don't miss the Lenten devotional series every evening until Easter!  Be sure to check back!