When the Ammonites saw that they had become odious to David, the Ammonites sent and hired the Arameans of Beth-rehob and the Arameans of Zobah, twenty thousand foot soldiers, as well as the king of Maacah, one thousand men, and the men of Tob, twelve thousand men. When David heard of it, he sent Joab and all the army with the warriors. The Ammonites came out and drew up in battle array at the entrance of the gate; but the Arameans of Zobah and of Rehob, and the men of Tob and Maacah, were by themselves in the open country.
When Joab saw that the battle was set against him both in front and in the rear, he chose some of the picked men of Israel, and arrayed them against the Arameans; the rest of his men he put in the charge of his brother Abishai, and he arrayed them against the Ammonites. He said, "If the Arameans are too strong for me, then you shall help me; but if the Ammonites are too strong for you, then I will come and help you. Be strong, and let us be courageous for the sake of our people, and for the cities of our God; and may the Lord do what seems good to him."
Who would we want to fight alongside?
The Ammonites, the aggressors, take the safest position, close to the gates of their own city.
They send the Arameans, paid soldiers, to stand on their own out in the field, well on the far side of the enemy. This move effectively surrounds the Israelites, but put the Arameans in a place where they can’t retreat to safety if things go badly. If Israel breaks out (and that would be the wise tactical move), it will be away from the city.
Israel stands its ground surrounded; the two brothers choose, as generals of their respective armies, to fight back to back. You have to admit, though, their position looks really bad.
Where would we want to be?
So Joab and the people who were with him moved forward into battle against the Arameans; and they fled before him. When the Ammonites saw that the Arameans fled, they likewise fled before Abishai, and entered the city. Then Joab returned from fighting against the Ammonites, and came to Jerusalem.
But when the Arameans saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they gathered themselves together. Hadadezer sent and brought out the Arameans who were beyond the Euphrates; and they came to Helam, with Shobach the commander of the army of Hadadezer at their head. When it was told David, he gathered all Israel together, and crossed the Jordan, and came to Helam. The Arameans arrayed themselves against David and fought with him. The Arameans fled before Israel; and David killed of the Arameans seven hundred chariot teams, and forty thousand horsemen, and wounded Shobach the commander of their army, so that he died there. When all the kings who were servants of Hadadezer saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they made peace with Israel, and became subject to them. So the Arameans were afraid to help the Ammonites any more.
2 Samuel 10:6-19 – NRSV
The outcomes of everyone’s choices are obvious now, aren’t they? Those who remain obsessed with their own safety are useless when things get tough, aren’t they? And the people who are only in it for the money, the mercenaries, aren’t much better; one solid push and they’re on the road again. They only come back to fight because they know that they’ve offended the Israelites, so they might as well return with overwhelming force. A little shock and awe from the Arameans. Except it doesn’t turn out like they expected, does it?
Where is the right place to be? I would want to be one of the people who knew that people I trusted were covering my back. I’d want to know that they felt like they had as much to lose as I did. I would want to believe that our relationship was a small but sure shield from the cruel flukes of misfortune and the vicious attacks of any enemy. Right next to the bigger shield that covers me every day.
Where do we want to be? I don't know about you, but I feel that I have chosen well.
Blessings,
Ron
Showing posts with label friendship. Show all posts
Showing posts with label friendship. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Friday, May 22, 2009
Spiritual friends ....
Today’s devotional thought is from Troy:
I am finishing up a book titled Living God’s Love: An Invitation to Christian Spirituality. I came to a part in the book that deals with hearing God through others. The author describes how we come to hear God through family, spouses, and friends. He goes on to say that we hear God’s voice through our “spiritual friends”. He writes:
“Spiritual friendship is one that does not seek to have our needs fulfilled in friendship, but rather proclaims the reign of God over all. It is a dangerous love that opens us and our friends to the socially disruptive possibilities of the life of God. In other words, a spiritual friend cares more about our relationship to God than about our happiness or even about our friendship. Such friends can confront us in love about our weaknesses, gently restoring us to deeper fellowship in love (see Galatians 6:1-2). They can speak the tough words of God to us, words we would not hear if they did not come from those who did not love us.
“God speaks through wise men and women who serve as spiritual mentors to us. We show wisdom if we seek the counsel of these wise ones. The book of Proverbs advises that we follow the path of the wise (Proverbs 8:33; 12:15; 15:31; 19:20; 22:17). One of the essentials ways of growing spiritually is intentionally looking for those who can guide us spiritually with an attitude of humility.”
Over the past several months I have witnessed this principle in work. What is very interesting to me is that it does not have a trickle-down effect, but rather a horizontal effect. I see older, more experienced staff members giving advice to the younger, less experienced staff members, and I see the older, more experienced staff members asking the younger, less experienced staff members advice. God has brought together a group of people with a wide variety of ages, experience, and education, to work together. This impacts the lives of not only our boys, but also each other; we are better because of this. What I see from the staff at Westview Boys’ Home is the living out of Romans 12:3-13:
“For by the grace given to me I bid every one among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith which God has assigned him. For as in one body we have many members, and all the members do not have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; he who teaches, in his teaching; he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who contributes, in liberality; he who gives aid, with zeal; he who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness. Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with brotherly affection; outdo one another in showing honor. Never flag in zeal, be aglow with the Spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in your hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints, practice hospitality.”
Blessings,
Troy
I am finishing up a book titled Living God’s Love: An Invitation to Christian Spirituality. I came to a part in the book that deals with hearing God through others. The author describes how we come to hear God through family, spouses, and friends. He goes on to say that we hear God’s voice through our “spiritual friends”. He writes:
“Spiritual friendship is one that does not seek to have our needs fulfilled in friendship, but rather proclaims the reign of God over all. It is a dangerous love that opens us and our friends to the socially disruptive possibilities of the life of God. In other words, a spiritual friend cares more about our relationship to God than about our happiness or even about our friendship. Such friends can confront us in love about our weaknesses, gently restoring us to deeper fellowship in love (see Galatians 6:1-2). They can speak the tough words of God to us, words we would not hear if they did not come from those who did not love us.
“God speaks through wise men and women who serve as spiritual mentors to us. We show wisdom if we seek the counsel of these wise ones. The book of Proverbs advises that we follow the path of the wise (Proverbs 8:33; 12:15; 15:31; 19:20; 22:17). One of the essentials ways of growing spiritually is intentionally looking for those who can guide us spiritually with an attitude of humility.”
Over the past several months I have witnessed this principle in work. What is very interesting to me is that it does not have a trickle-down effect, but rather a horizontal effect. I see older, more experienced staff members giving advice to the younger, less experienced staff members, and I see the older, more experienced staff members asking the younger, less experienced staff members advice. God has brought together a group of people with a wide variety of ages, experience, and education, to work together. This impacts the lives of not only our boys, but also each other; we are better because of this. What I see from the staff at Westview Boys’ Home is the living out of Romans 12:3-13:
“For by the grace given to me I bid every one among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith which God has assigned him. For as in one body we have many members, and all the members do not have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; he who teaches, in his teaching; he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who contributes, in liberality; he who gives aid, with zeal; he who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness. Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with brotherly affection; outdo one another in showing honor. Never flag in zeal, be aglow with the Spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in your hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints, practice hospitality.”
Blessings,
Troy
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
You have become so dear to me ...
Today, I received an email from a deacon at the last congregation where we worked and worshipped. As I read this email and began to pray for the prayer request in the email, I realized something. We may have moved 1,300 miles away from our brothers and sisters up in Pittsburgh, but I still feel the closeness and the love in my heart that I did on the day that we left.
Dave, who is the deacon I mentioned earlier, is such a giving man. His passion for the Lord and doing the right thing explodes out of every pore of his body. I cannot tell you the times that he bent over backwards to help someone else out. As the worship leader there, you couldn’t have found a better person to watch during worship, because he was pouring his heart out with every word he sung. The day that I told the congregation that we had chosen to move away and the reasons why we were moving, he felt cut to the heart. We left the congregation because we couldn’t afford to live in that area with our growing family and the amount they were able to pay me. I hate that this was our reason, but we had to think of our family’s well-being. Anyway, Dave came up to me afterwards with check book in hand and said, “How much do you need to get you guys to stay with us?” Can I tell you how tempted I was to take that money so we could stay and worship with our family there?
We had a bond. There was a connection in Spirit, in heart, and in passion. So many great things had happened and were happening. We love our Pittsburgh family. Dave reminded me of something today. He reminded me of the Community! We were a community concerned for each others' well being. We were concerned about each other’s kids. We were all there for each other. I never doubt the love they had for all of us. Our kids learned so much about God and His family while we were at Crossroads.
We love you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us. - 1 Thessalonians 2:8
This family meant so much to us. They still do, but we have been led here to this community. We are a family working, living, crying, hurting, loving, ministering, worshipping, serving, and being together. We have all been drawn here for a reason. We have all come from varying backgrounds. The amazing thing though, is that I believe that God placed us all in each other’s lives for a reason. Did you know that community is a discipline? Practicing being together is a discipline. Some of you may think that this should be something so easy to practice. We are together a lot, so doesn’t that make us a community practicing community anyway? Part of this community is realizing that we are sharing in all of this together. Not only the good times and the fun times, but the hard times as well.
Others…become agents of grace in our growth toward wholeness in Christ while we become agents of God’s grace to their growth. - Robert Mulholland
I want to challenge us all to practice intentional friendship. Practice a friendship that goes beyond just the shallow knowledge of each other. Some are already setting aside time to sit down and study together. They pray and read the Word together. They share their hearts and have this time where they are being vulnerable and close to each other. That is a great part of the community. That is being with each other in the strongest way possible. I am responsible to make sure you are growing closer to God. You are responsible for me as well. We are responsible for showing this community to our boys and letting them know that this is a safe place to be together and grow together in ways they have never grown before.
I want to challenge you all to think of ways that you can grow closer in this spiritual sense in our community. If you feel drawn to form a bible study group, or just meet and pray once a week together in our coffee shop, or whatever, listen to that Spirit’s tug in your heart and do it. Think of it this way, if I have become so dear to you, like in 1 Thessalonians 2:8, what are you doing to help me grow in my faith? We should all be asking ourselves that question about each other every day. Take the time to consider what you are doing and follow the Spirit’s guidance as he leads us all into a deeper community of believers.
I love you my brothers and sisters!
Jason
Dave, who is the deacon I mentioned earlier, is such a giving man. His passion for the Lord and doing the right thing explodes out of every pore of his body. I cannot tell you the times that he bent over backwards to help someone else out. As the worship leader there, you couldn’t have found a better person to watch during worship, because he was pouring his heart out with every word he sung. The day that I told the congregation that we had chosen to move away and the reasons why we were moving, he felt cut to the heart. We left the congregation because we couldn’t afford to live in that area with our growing family and the amount they were able to pay me. I hate that this was our reason, but we had to think of our family’s well-being. Anyway, Dave came up to me afterwards with check book in hand and said, “How much do you need to get you guys to stay with us?” Can I tell you how tempted I was to take that money so we could stay and worship with our family there?
We had a bond. There was a connection in Spirit, in heart, and in passion. So many great things had happened and were happening. We love our Pittsburgh family. Dave reminded me of something today. He reminded me of the Community! We were a community concerned for each others' well being. We were concerned about each other’s kids. We were all there for each other. I never doubt the love they had for all of us. Our kids learned so much about God and His family while we were at Crossroads.
We love you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us. - 1 Thessalonians 2:8
This family meant so much to us. They still do, but we have been led here to this community. We are a family working, living, crying, hurting, loving, ministering, worshipping, serving, and being together. We have all been drawn here for a reason. We have all come from varying backgrounds. The amazing thing though, is that I believe that God placed us all in each other’s lives for a reason. Did you know that community is a discipline? Practicing being together is a discipline. Some of you may think that this should be something so easy to practice. We are together a lot, so doesn’t that make us a community practicing community anyway? Part of this community is realizing that we are sharing in all of this together. Not only the good times and the fun times, but the hard times as well.
Others…become agents of grace in our growth toward wholeness in Christ while we become agents of God’s grace to their growth. - Robert Mulholland
I want to challenge us all to practice intentional friendship. Practice a friendship that goes beyond just the shallow knowledge of each other. Some are already setting aside time to sit down and study together. They pray and read the Word together. They share their hearts and have this time where they are being vulnerable and close to each other. That is a great part of the community. That is being with each other in the strongest way possible. I am responsible to make sure you are growing closer to God. You are responsible for me as well. We are responsible for showing this community to our boys and letting them know that this is a safe place to be together and grow together in ways they have never grown before.
I want to challenge you all to think of ways that you can grow closer in this spiritual sense in our community. If you feel drawn to form a bible study group, or just meet and pray once a week together in our coffee shop, or whatever, listen to that Spirit’s tug in your heart and do it. Think of it this way, if I have become so dear to you, like in 1 Thessalonians 2:8, what are you doing to help me grow in my faith? We should all be asking ourselves that question about each other every day. Take the time to consider what you are doing and follow the Spirit’s guidance as he leads us all into a deeper community of believers.
I love you my brothers and sisters!
Jason
Friday, October 3, 2008
Outside in
Have you ever been called into community?
When I was fourteen years old, I was called into community, although I would not have put it that way. I was the typical, nerdy adolescent: bright, not socially adept, and not particularly athletic. I made good grades (at the time, an underachiever), was a member of Student Council, was a Life Scout, went out for the baseball team (but never got to play in a game), and lived a life removed from faith altogether. In my case, this did not make me different than the rest of my family, because none of us went to church. Hardly ever. Weddings and funerals – that was it. When it came to church, I was definitely an outsider.
Then a small but significant thing happened in my life. A friend that I had known since kindergarten asked me to go to a church event with him one evening. It was nice to be invited, so I went with Rodney. Neither one of us could drive, so his folks picked us up in their Buick LeSabre and drove us to church. It was an interesting community. I was attracted to the young people in this church, but really, the entire group seemed open and welcoming. And so I began to go to church with Rod regularly.
Every time the church doors were open, Dean and Lucille O’Dell would drive out of their way (about a mile) to come by my house and pick me up to go to church with them. Over the next several months, I was invited into relationships with members of that community: friendships, teacher/student relationships, mentor/mentored relationships, relationships with spiritual fathers, and relationships with spiritual mothers. I had never experienced anything like this before. The community was affirming and connecting. This community gave me guidance, but it did not seek control. This community sought to help me find myself, and gave me some clues about what that self might look like, but it did not seek to make me conform to some standard and preconceived mold.
I wanted to be a part of this community.
Fortunately for me, the Eastside Church of Christ in Duncan, Oklahoma extended regular invitations to outsiders to become insiders. But really, they had brought me into the community, and shared with the me many of the benefits of the community long before I agreed to become a member of it. They welcomed me into their fellowship, and did whatever it took to allow me to participate in it. They picked me up and drove me to church until I was old enough to drive myself. They helped my brother and sister make the same regular trips. They understood community.
Have you ever been called into community?
When you were born, you were called into the community of family.
When you became a Christian, you were called into the community of faith.
When you came to minister at Westview, you were called into a community of hospitality and healing.
We have all been called into community.
Now it is in our hands to help shape those communities. How will they look? Will our communities appear to be open and inviting, or closed and impenetrable? Will our communities seek to serve as the grace of God, or as his judgment? Will we gently mold each other, or use the tools of manipulation? All of these decisions, and hundreds of others, shape the character of our community. That community may be our church, our ministry, or our family.
What do our communities look like? Do people see open arms or cold shoulders? Do people hear inviting words or impossible demands? Is it more likely that the people smell the aroma of Christ or the stink of unresolved disagreements? Can people taste the fruits of the Spirit amongst us, or can they not even get to the table? Do people feel the embrace of fellowship, or the cold distance between us? It is good to see ourselves as we are, but complaining about it never fixed anything. Only persistent, loving action can do that.
Have you ever been called into community?
On behalf of Jesus Christ, I am recalling you into your communities today. See them afresh. Help them be renewed. Restore to them the vibrancy intended by their Lord and Master.
Many will be blessed if we do these things. Who knows how many lives may be touched by influencing just one person. One outsider.
Grace and peace,
Ron
When I was fourteen years old, I was called into community, although I would not have put it that way. I was the typical, nerdy adolescent: bright, not socially adept, and not particularly athletic. I made good grades (at the time, an underachiever), was a member of Student Council, was a Life Scout, went out for the baseball team (but never got to play in a game), and lived a life removed from faith altogether. In my case, this did not make me different than the rest of my family, because none of us went to church. Hardly ever. Weddings and funerals – that was it. When it came to church, I was definitely an outsider.
Then a small but significant thing happened in my life. A friend that I had known since kindergarten asked me to go to a church event with him one evening. It was nice to be invited, so I went with Rodney. Neither one of us could drive, so his folks picked us up in their Buick LeSabre and drove us to church. It was an interesting community. I was attracted to the young people in this church, but really, the entire group seemed open and welcoming. And so I began to go to church with Rod regularly.
Every time the church doors were open, Dean and Lucille O’Dell would drive out of their way (about a mile) to come by my house and pick me up to go to church with them. Over the next several months, I was invited into relationships with members of that community: friendships, teacher/student relationships, mentor/mentored relationships, relationships with spiritual fathers, and relationships with spiritual mothers. I had never experienced anything like this before. The community was affirming and connecting. This community gave me guidance, but it did not seek control. This community sought to help me find myself, and gave me some clues about what that self might look like, but it did not seek to make me conform to some standard and preconceived mold.
I wanted to be a part of this community.
Fortunately for me, the Eastside Church of Christ in Duncan, Oklahoma extended regular invitations to outsiders to become insiders. But really, they had brought me into the community, and shared with the me many of the benefits of the community long before I agreed to become a member of it. They welcomed me into their fellowship, and did whatever it took to allow me to participate in it. They picked me up and drove me to church until I was old enough to drive myself. They helped my brother and sister make the same regular trips. They understood community.
Have you ever been called into community?
When you were born, you were called into the community of family.
When you became a Christian, you were called into the community of faith.
When you came to minister at Westview, you were called into a community of hospitality and healing.
We have all been called into community.
Now it is in our hands to help shape those communities. How will they look? Will our communities appear to be open and inviting, or closed and impenetrable? Will our communities seek to serve as the grace of God, or as his judgment? Will we gently mold each other, or use the tools of manipulation? All of these decisions, and hundreds of others, shape the character of our community. That community may be our church, our ministry, or our family.
What do our communities look like? Do people see open arms or cold shoulders? Do people hear inviting words or impossible demands? Is it more likely that the people smell the aroma of Christ or the stink of unresolved disagreements? Can people taste the fruits of the Spirit amongst us, or can they not even get to the table? Do people feel the embrace of fellowship, or the cold distance between us? It is good to see ourselves as we are, but complaining about it never fixed anything. Only persistent, loving action can do that.
Have you ever been called into community?
On behalf of Jesus Christ, I am recalling you into your communities today. See them afresh. Help them be renewed. Restore to them the vibrancy intended by their Lord and Master.
Many will be blessed if we do these things. Who knows how many lives may be touched by influencing just one person. One outsider.
Grace and peace,
Ron
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)