Psalm 14; Living under the Microscope

That little guy in his business suit up there in this week's picture sort of makes me laugh. He's trying to be all professional and whatnot, but he's super uncomfortable with that giant magnifying glass over him. Maybe it's because he's about to burst into flame, but most likely it's because he doesn't like to be that closely observed. I guess if you think about it, he's a lot like our modern celebrities. I'm sure many of you guys remember Britney Spears' "meltdown," as the news called it, where she shaved her head and whatnot, followed by the famous "Leave Britney Alone" video on youtube. It's kind of funny at first, but then again, you can't help but feel bad for celebrities like her. Constant newscasters and photographers everywhere you go. Crazy Jr. High fans (just kidding :P). As a celeb, the world's eyes are on you 24/7, and they leave absolutely no privacy for you. Celebrities literally live their lives under the microscope, but they aren't the only ones!

Verse 1
To the world, Christianity is foolish. Each one rejects God for their own reason, but the resulting attitude is almost always the same; negative feelings towards christians. When people learn that we are christian, often times they begin to watch our actions to see if we hold up to what we say we are. It is unfortunate, but in this way, we are also sentenced to a life under the microscope. And, since we are all imperfect sinners, we inevitably mess up, and that's when Christianity gets judgements placed upon it, similar to the one we see here in verse 1. "See, look, they don't do what they say they believe in: they messed up. That means that Christianity is a sham." Sadly that is too often what goes through unbelievers' minds, and it leads to bitterness and hardened hearts. It is an event that I see happening around me in my own life, and every time it breaks my heart. It is a foolish and immature action on the part of the unbeliever, but you can't say it isn't fair, I suppose. We are indeed failing to meet our own proclaimed way of life. However, the wondrous fact about our relationship with God is that, through Jesus' death and resurrection, we are made perfect and un-stained. He views each and every one of His children as spotless, and that is the all-important fact that the world overlooks in their judgement.

Verses 2-4
Upon reading this part of the Psalm, my heart is put at peace. Why, you may ask? It is pointing out the depravity of sin, after all, but the grace that I see in this situation is that God is constantly looking for all who may believe! He never deserts us believers, and constantly protects us, but he doesn't stop there! For all of our friends who aren't saved, for all of humanity, He maintains a passionate desire for a relationship. There is always hope for even the hardest of hearts, because He will never give up on them. They may attack God's children, nit-pick aspects of us through their microscopes, or turn a cold shoulder all together upon us and give us over as "outsiders," but through all that, God seeks after their hearts. If He is so crazy about unbelievers, how much more does He go wild over those who have a relationship with Him? Amazingly enough, through all this, though, there are still many who "devour believers as men eat bread;" We will always be inspected by those outside of Christianity, but that is not something to be afraid of! How many more opportunities to set an example as believers will we have, the more they turn up the magnification!

Verses5-7
No matter what the world throws our way, God is always our support! Evildoers may try to bring you down, and they come in many forms. Even a friend having a rough day can sometimes feel like taking it out on you, but these verses tell us that God is always right there with us! He is where we truly draw our strength from. To quote one of my favorite songs at the moment "When you're weak, Love is strong" (Hold On - Phil Wickham). In times of scrutiny or attack, God's love never fails. All we need to do is move our self out of the way, and lean upon His strength so He can work through us. This sort of trusting relationship is exactly the type that comes as a result of "praying without ceasing," to tie back to last week's Psalm. The works that God can do through us are truly amazing, and He will use even the least of us if only we are willing to let Him do so.

Passing Inspection:
One of the scariest things that you can face is opening yourself up for public inspection. Whether you find yourself on stage for a school play, or talking with a best friend about someone you like, you will most likely be sweating bullets. I know that I am extremely self conscious in situations like that, and I'm willing to bet you guys understand what I mean from your own experiences. As Christians though, we always live under the microscope. Non-believers are always going to be there to inspect our Christian attitudes and actions on a daily basis. Thankfully, though, our Father is with us every step of the way, and is always willing to lend us His strength. With Him, we can pass our inspection; He loves using regular people like you and me as examples to those around us, because the best argument for Christianity can often be the believer who shows love to his friend when he needs it most.

My challenge to you guys this week - Set an example through your life that reflects a Christ-like attitude, but don't forget to rely on the Lord's strength to do so.

-Matt

Pray Without Ceasing

This weeks Psalm is short and sweet - Psalm 13



I'm guessing from the title and the picture, you have already figured out that we're talking about prayer today. For young ones like you, prayer is a silly thing - not that it's funny, but for so many junior highers, prayer is very very difficult. I'm sure you can remember a time in Amped, where we asked if someone would like to pray for the group ... and no one wanted to. I know it's a little different, but that's what I'm talking about. Prayer shouldn't be something we are afraid of, prayer isn't something that has to be super formal, and most definitely, prayer isn't something we should be doing just at church. For a group of people that can't seem to keep there mouth shut elsewhere, sometimes I wonder why it's so difficult for young people to talk to God. Don't get me wrong, I fall into the same boat some times, but i'd encourage you (especially this week) to give prayer a shot - take some time aside and pray ... just pray.

Verses 1-4 If you've already read the six verses for this week, you might be a little confused about why we're talking about prayer. Let me explain: David was a man of prayer - a prayer warrior if you will. No matter what it was, he took his worries, his concerns, his frustrations to God (always accompanied with praise of course). He starts the chapter with questions to God - why is this happening? what's the deal? Over the last couple of weeks, we've seen that the Christians place in this world is one of an outcast. For the sake of Biblical example - we are the lepers of this world. If the devil were to have his way, he would have us all disappear. He knows that he cannot take our hearts, so he'd rather just not have us here. Since we are here, he will do his best to humiliate us - to make us ineffective for Christ. David lived in a world that is very much similar to the one we live in today. Just because there was no X-box, iPhone, or Facebook does not mean that there were no worries or troubling thoughts that came to this righteous man's mind. So what does he do? David humbles himself and he prays, "God enlighten my eyes." If you truly are having a tough time in your life right now, the only place David would recommend you go is to the Father. God will not always make clear what his intentions are, but He will most certainly remind you of who He is - He will give you peace and comfort. One of the most powerful verses I have memorized is this - cast ALL of your cares upon him, for He cares for you." (1 Peter 5:7). No matter what it is ... whether a cry of anger or one of brokenness ... the Father just wants to talk with you.

Verses 5-6 The photo above seems to be a bit upside down if you ask me. In this chapter, David starts with grieving, not with praise. Regardless, this man who began his prayer with frustrations, ends his petition proclaiming the majesty of God. If you take me up on this weeks challenge, you'll find that the Father always has a way of changing tears into a smile. If you go to Him with a burden, you will see that He will gladly take it away. David gives us a beautiful picture here - His body may be suffering, but his soul is always rejoicing. I think this is what the "sleep of death" from verse 3 is talking about. If you are not communicating with the Father, how can your soul rejoice? If you read your Bible just to get it off your daily checklist, how is your spirit to be joyful? Without an adoration for the Father, a Bible verse is simply words on a page. Without prayer, the Christian walk is dead. Just as human contact is essential for life, the spirit needs to be in communication with the Father. Just as we need food to live, we need to word to feed the spirit.

Unlimited Minutes If God had a cell-phone, I could promise you that he would have unlimited minutes (and unlimited lines). God is always open to speak with you - when you're falling asleep at night, when you wake up in the morning, when you just had a fight with your parents, when your friend just stabbed you in the back, when things are just not going your way ... when trial and tribulation come knocking at your door - the Father is eagerly anticipating a call from you ... that is the power of prayer.


I encourage you this week - pray without ceasing ... easier said than done.
-Chris

Flattering Lips

A few weeks ago, I was reading Luke to prepare for our Sunday study when I stumbled across a few verses that have always been a bit troubling to me. Jesus, in a crowd of people, claims that he comes to bring division amongst the people - that he doesn't come to join the kingdom, but to establish one of his own. He continues later to say that anyone who doesn't hate his own parents in comparison to how much they love Him is not fit for his kingdom. Today, we're talking about a little something that David likes to call "flattering lips." Jesus didn't speak to flatter people with words for their "itching ears" (2 Tim 4:3), but rather, he came to speak about reality and truth. Sometimes in life, preaching the gospel message is not very appealing - especially when the ultimatum is "repent, or you'll go to hell" (granted, we preach this with love). As odd as it seems, our job as Christians is not to make people happy, but to show them where to find happiness in the Father. HERE --- Psalm 12

Verses 1-2 Just as in David's time, I believe that the followers of God are disappearing - not in a sense that they are actually gone, but more like they are dressed in disguise. These believers David is talking about have spent so much time in the world, that they live, act, speak, and look just like the rest of the world. I think about the church as a whole today - about how many people walk through the front doors on Sunday morning only to leave an hour later unchanged, unaffected. This is the "double-heart" we see in verse 2. I like to think of it this way: If we were to characterize the way we lived our lives by hats, we should ideally only have to wear one. Unfortunately, as David says, some people like to wear more than one hat. They go to church, and put on the "Jesus" hat, but when they leave and go out into the world, they take the "Jesus" hat off as soon as it is an inconvenience. Instead, they put on the "dirty jokes" hat, the "swearing" hat, the "alcohol" hat, the "drug" hat ... I'm sure you catch my drift. Why would this happen? Why would people want to change their hat so often in life? Well, quite frankly ... people want to be flattering. Sometimes, people are not too fond of the "Jesus" hat. I'll tell you this ... that people wearing the "drug" hats and the "dirty jokes" hats don't like it when people stroll in proudly wearing Jesus. Does that mean we change? Does that mean we should change our live styles based on the occasion? ... I'm sure you can answer that yourself. Sometimes, being the Christian at school is not the most flattering thing to be ... but that's no reason to go in disguise.

Verses 3-5 This kind of gets a little brutal - "the Lord will cut off flattering lips." David brings in this new element of pride ... Some people are too prideful to share Jesus - they feel that they cannot live a life for Christ because the cost of their reputation is simply too much ... If that's you ... I tell you it's not where you want to be. We read shortly after that God even has authority over people who think that no one "can tell them what to do." People are afraid to share Jesus because it makes them vulnerable, but the Lord rises up and says "Don't worry, I'll show you what safety you need." ... If you want to share Jesus, not only will He speak through you (Luke 12:12), but he will protect you as he has promised.

Verses 6-8 This last section is pretty clear. Why do we share the word of God? Why does it even matter? It's simply because the word of God is pure - it doesn't need flattering lips, it doesn't need pride ... it's simply the truth. David even mentions this fact that it has been purified seven times - it's perfected. God's word is true, it's pure, and it is most definitely perfect. David says at the end ... wickedness with prowl about the earth, but the won't stop God from upholding His Word.


God will always uphold his word. He will always stand behind it. In John 1:1 we read, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." God's word, God's good news, is simply Jesus. Are you willing to cut off your own "flattering" lips for the sake of Christ? Are you willing to put on the "Jesus" hat and never take it off? ... Just think about it.

-Chris

The Bow, The Arrow, The Attack -- Psalm 11

This week, we cover a very short Psalm ... Psalm 11

Verses 1-4 I don't know if you know, but it is quite possible that the coolest weapon of all time is the bow and arrow. When I was probably around six years old, my family took a trip to the Grand Canyon where my parents bought me a toy bow and arrow set. As the toy was placed in my hands, my mind changed from one of a six year old boy to that of an assassin, thirsty for imaginary blood. As we drove on the road I would pretend to shoot passing cars with my Indian like skills, as we exited the car, I would climb out the window - life was intense. No matter what it took, I was going to kill the entire world with my toy weapon. Anyway, we read this Psalm, and we find that the thought process of the devil is no different than that of a six year old boy. Let me be truthful - the devil is very powerful, and he knows our tendency to sin. The fact of the matter is that the Bible tells us that Satan is as a roaring lion that roams the earth ready to feast. So why would I ever say that he is like a six year old boy? In the story I just shared about my embarrassing childhood, I honestly thought that I could take over the world with my bow and arrow. Reading the Psalm, we find that the Devil is no different. He holds HIS bow and HIS arrow just as i did when i was a boy - hoping to take over the world. He shoots at us hoping that someday it just might do some damage ... but when the arrow hits, it just bounces off like the plastic arrows I had when i was six. Let me tell you something, the world will not only shoot "arrows" at you in this life, but bullets and missiles too. There will be temptations in your life, there will be hard times - times of frustration or maybe even sorrow. Sure, you might falter here or there (all people sin - Rom 3:23), but ultimately, the devil can do you no harm. As David concludes, the Lord is on the throne in heaven ready to defend his people. The devil hopes to someday destroy your foundation ... If you put your trust in the Father, he will never succeed.

Verses 5-7 When we read this, it's important to distinguish between attack and trial. The devil wants to attack you because he wants to make you look like a fool before the throne of God. On the other hand, God allows this to happen as a test. We read in James, God's only intention in trial is to develop our faith and our perseverance for our ultimate goal in Christ Jesus. This is partly why the devil will never succeed in bringing you down if you cling to the Father. God will never allow Satan to attack you beyond what you are able to handle - we read about this in the book of Job. The awesome part is that God is on our side. I would hate to be on the other side of the fight, for David says all that is reserved for those who stand in wickedness is fire and brimstone - which doesn't sound very nice. GOD LOVES RIGHTEOUSNESS. GOD LOVES YOU.

The devil may set his bow and his arrow against you ... well, he might even attack you from time to time, but God knows you and all that you are capable of in Him.

Have a great week

- Chris