Our God Is Near

011 WWJH What Would Jesus Hate?

WWJH - What Would Jesus Hate   If you've been around Christian circles long enough, you'll remember when WWJD bracelets were popular back in the 90s.   It stood for What Would Jesus Do, and these popular bracelets were a way to be reminded to think about what Jesus might do in a certain situation.   How would he have loved well or what words might he have spoken?   I always liked the idea and thought it was a helpful way to keep Jesus' words and direction top of mind for those of us who follow him.     But more recently, I've found myself thinking more about WWJH... What Would Jesus Hate?   Unfortunately, ask any non-church goer in the country this question and I'm sure you'd get a pretty strong list of who they believe the church hates. It's unfortunate.   But those aren't the things that come top of mind when I think of WWJH.   No, my mind goes back more toward who and what made Jesus angry in the Bible.   And that... that was those who claimed to represent God but whose lives told another story altogether.   Those that were religious but took advantage of others.   Those that loved to be seen doing good things in public, but in private were abusers and manipulators.   The Pharisees, the religious leaders of Jesus day, often received the harshest of his words.   And he didn't hold back.   He called them "blind guides", "white washed tombs" and "broods of vipers"   They were supposed to be helping lead people to God, but they were sending another message altogether.   Jesus hated lack of accountability, lack of responsibility, of caring and kindness and compassion.   The people who received Jesus warmest words were those who had been on the receiving end of the abuse. The victims, the downtrodden, the outcasts and "sinners".     So, maybe, our churches today could do well to make up some WWJH bracelets and pass THOSE around. And let those bracelets bring conviction and change into the core of our church bodies.     I believe that is where we can start to see a true impact in the world around us.

010 Thank You

I just wanted to pop in here at episode 10 and say thank you.   Thank you for taking time to listen, to walk with me on this journey and ask the questions that can help us grow in our faith and wrestle with our doubts.   I've heard from so many of you already who have told me that you've resonated with some or all of the episodes and I'm so thankful.   My desire was just to talk out loud and bring anyone along that wants to join me.   Life can be hard. Very hard. And more and more I hear stories that break my heart. Pain, abuse, depression, anxiety, despair.   There is so much of it out there. And often in the midst of it we can't see God. We can't feel Him near us.    But I believe as we reach out to him with our questions and doubts and fears, as we cry out to him from the depths of our pain... he is there. He can bring healing and hope.   And as we share with each other we can find encouragement and strength as well.   If you haven't subscribed, go ahead and do that so that you'll automatically receive new episodes when they release.   And if you know if anyone else that the podcast could help, please share it with them.   Finally, I'd love to connect and hear from you. You can find me online on Facebook and Twitter as well as shooting me a message at ourgodisnear.com [http://ourgodisnear.com/]   Again, thanks for listening and joining me as we walk this walk together.

009 Where Does It Hurt?

WHERE DOES IT HURT?   The doctor asks you "Where does it hurt?" but you're not exactly sure.   So she begins to poke around to check.   Poke... Nothing.    Poke... Nothing.    Poke... yep, there it is!    When she pokes THAT spot, a jolt shoots through your body as you jump up and recoil.   She's stumbled upon the wound.   It may have been dormant for a while, but when it's poked, all the memories and flashbacks and pain and anxiety rush back.     Truth is, each of us has those spots.   They may not be clearly seen to the outside world, but beneath the surface... a thick scar. A reminder of pain we've absorbed.   It could be a loss. Loss of a parent, a friend, a sibling, a mentor ...a spouse... a child. An emptiness that remains unfilled, stirred to the surface by dates or memories.   It could be abuse. Physical. Mental. Emotional. Sexual. Years that can never be returned. A life forever changed by the actions of another.   It could be disappointment. A job that fell through. A dream that crashed and burned.   It could be rejection. A close friend who has cut ties. A child that has turned away from you. A spouse that has told you they're done with you.    It could be a wound that developed over a long span or an instantaneous blast that has forever left you scarred.     Maybe you've accidentally poked someone in their spot, bringing back a flood of emotions and pain.   Or possibly the same has happened for you. A word. A name. A place. A person. A date. A song. A smell.    And when that trigger activated your wound, it was as fresh as the day you received it.   We will never truly be free of these wounds this side of Heaven.   But God, the Divine Healer, can bring healing and bind up our broken parts.   And so often, His vehicle of choice is people.   He loves to use willing hearts, loving hands, listening ears and praying souls to bring His healing to a broken world.   Today, will you trust God once again with your wounds and your healing?   And will you be willing to also be that vessel He can use to bring healing to another?

008 Finding God - He Is Not Far From Us

FINDING GOD... HE IS NOT FAR FROM US   Nearly every week in my Sunday school class we have a word search.   I love word searches.   Maybe it's the challenge of finding that all-elusive word, like "righteousness", that is backwards and diagonal and hidden in that big forest of letters.   As you might expect, the word "God" is present quite a bit, regardless of the topic we're covering.   But recently, it just sort of struck me as I "found God" on the word search.   It struck me because it caused me to zoom way out and look at why we were even here.   Who are we and who is God and what is the story being told here?   There is a passage in the book of Acts in the Bible that gives us a little glimpse.   The apostle Paul was in Athens and there was a tomb there to an unknown god.   He took the opportunity to share with the Athenians that this god that they were searching for knew them and could, in fact, be known by them.   He proceeds to recap the story of history and how God created men and women on this Earth, gave us life and breath and everything we needed internally and externally to live and thrive.   And how from that first man and woman the nations came about and inhabited the whole Earth.   Then there is my favorite part of the passage.   "God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us." (Acts 17:27)   This just pierces to the heart of all that we long for as people.   To be sought after. To be known. To be valued. To have purpose and meaning. To be loved. To be missed.   "...he is not far from any one of us...."   I'll admit that there have been plenty of times, especially over this last year, when He has felt anything but near to me.   When I have reached for him and felt like I couldn't find him.   But I know that anytime there is a distance... He isn't the one who moved.   So I press in deeper.   He is still there to be found by each one of us. If we will seek Him.   Will you reach out for Him today?

007 Two Full Years Later

TWO FULL YEARS LATER...   Are you in a period of waiting?    Maybe you've been struggling to feel God's presence or direction, wondering if He's heard your prayers and when things are going to change... if ever.   If you only knew how long you had to wait, you could hang in there a little bit longer.   It's hard. And some days it feels agonizing.   I was reading something recently that helped give me a little bit of hope. And maybe it will for you as well.   In the story of Joseph in the Bible, he had just interpreted the dreams of his fellow inmates and the cupbearer had told him that he would let Pharaoh know about Joseph as soon as he was out. Joseph had to be thinking any day he would be called for and delivered from his unjust imprisonment.   But one day passed. Then another.  No word.   Then a week. Two weeks. Several months.  Still nothing.   In fact, the Bible says that it was a full two years later that the next chapter in Joseph's life would take place.   I tried to stop and put myself in Josephs shoes. Two years. 730 long days of waiting.   Two years is long enough in and of itself, but not knowing when the end would come makes two years feel like ten years.   And yet, God was working in his waiting. As Joseph focused on the work God had given him to do while still in the prison, God was at work in Joseph's heart, preparing him and the country for what was about to take place next.   I would guess Joseph probably asked God on more than one occasion to deliver him from the prison. And from our birds eye view we can see that if God answered that prayer, the rest wouldn't have happened - saving his family and a nation from starvation.   And then there is you and me. We're waiting as well. We don't know if it will be a week or a month or two years until God answers or delivers or shows us the next step.   But our job is to be to be available to Him during this time. To let Him do his work in us and around us where we are. And to trust Him with orchestrating things we can't see right now.   Will you join me in leaning in to Him in a fresh way again today?