Improving the Silence

"Don't speak unless you can improve the silence..." -English proverb

If I have learned nothing else during this fast, I have surely recognized the superfluity of most of what I would have spent my time saying. James 3 is one of the most clear statements from the Word of God concerning the power of the spoken word in our lives. However, less commonly known but synonymous in importance is Ephesians 4-5. I encourage you guys to read both of these passages. Five minutes worth of reading + receiving + responding in the mundane is how change happens, both in great and small things. This, though it seems like a small thing, happens to be the Great Stumbling Block.

...Little did I know that two days after creating this post, Mike Bickle would teach on the exact same thing at our Sunday service. He said it so clearly, please listen to it--don't worry... you have the time: click here to get the message!

Quote from Happy Are You Poor

“It must be noticed that the values of the kingdom are just about 180 degrees removed from the values of the world… It is assumed that every one knows them and that most people live by them. What are these premises: prestige is a primary value… bodily comfort and pleasure are indispensable… this life is all we have, and so let’s enjoy it to the full… impressing people with one’s possessions and accomplishments and attractiveness is important… sexual excitement and satisfaction are crucial… success is ‘coming out on top’ in relation to others… money is a must, for without it one can have very little of anything else worth having in life.

“If we turn to the pages of the New Testament we find a picture as opposite as it could be: humility, being last, unknown, hidden in Christ, is a condition for getting into the kingdom… prestige is worthless and even an obstacle to greatness… the hard road and the narrow gate, carrying the cross every day is immensely important… dying to our selfishness and crucifying our illusory desires are indispensable… impressing people is of no importance at all, whereas being pleasing to the divine eyes is everything… virginity is a favored and privileged state, and chaste fidelity in marriage mirrors the very union of Christ and his Church… one may not try to best others; rather he is to serve them as though he were a slave… it most difficult, indeed it is humanly impossible, for the wealthy to enter the kingdom of heaven.”

-Thomas Dubay, Happy Are You Poor, pp. 57-58


Great book--short but taking me so long to read, and absolutely rending my heart to shreds in the process. I highly, highly recommend it.

Silence

Finally, I think I'm ready to post, and I actually have time to! We're almost half way through this 40 day fast, and I am so proud and provoked by all those around me. Being silent for these 17 days has really given me the ability to enjoy others, although they feel totally awkward because I can't say anything to them.

So what has the Lord been saying in these past two weeks? Wow... well isn't that a question. The answer is actually a lot simpler than I thought it would be. I would bring it down to three points:

1) The Centrality of Christ
It is so easy to get overly acquainted with the idea of Jesus. Key word--idea. When it comes down to it, do I know Him? If I were standing face to face with Him, and we were talking to one another about what we love about one another, how much would I have to say about Him? What would be the content of our conversation?
In former times, the Lord revealed Himself in many ways and through many voices. But now, He speaks to us with one thunderous Word--His Son (Hebrews 1:1-3). Throughout the book of John, Jesus makes the most outrageous statements about Himself. Despite all that God had revealed before His birth, John 1:18 explicitly says, "No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten of the Father, He has explained Him." In His life, death, and glorification, Jesus is the resounding voice of the Lord speaking to humanity.
Being a person who delights in the knowledge of God, I have many times expounded on the rhetoric of this truth. However, now that I am taking the time to look through the Scriptures and come to Him with them in prayer (John 5:39-40), it is astounding to find that what I've said is actually true! There is a power on the prayerful study of the Person of Christ that really does supernaturally exhilarate and strengthen the heart. It takes a little while to get past the mundane of it, but when it's trudged through, I come out on the other side feeling alive and clean.

2) The Jealousy of the Holy Spirit
I have God living on the inside of me. He is always there, no matter if I feel Him or not, and He is always passionately desiring all of my affection and attention, whether I am aware of it or not. His jealousy is burning more hotly than any person I have ever known or ever will know, and yet in His eternal gentleness He restrains from taking over before I want Him to. He wants agreement, and yet He's not demanding because He wants it deeply and profoundly.
The only love God requires from us is non-obligatory love. He is the ultimate stalker, yet in the words of Alicia Good, "the only difference between a victim and a lover is the nature of their beloved." Praise the Lord that we have a Beloved who is like no other.
To make this more concrete and not so ethereal, let me say this: God really offers us continual communion with the Holy Spirit. He is actually calling every believer to it. This does not mean that He is offering an experience of unbroken ecstasy (which we will have in the coming Age), but He is a Person who is always there inside wanting a friend to converse with. Communion is conversation, plain and simple, though sometimes nothing is said at all. God is jealous for it.

3) The Urgency of Knowing the Lord
At the end of the first week of the fast, I went to see a movie at the dollar theatre called "Amazing Grace." If you have not seen this movie, I would highly recommend it. It is the story of William Wilberforce, the man who spear-headed the abolition of slavery in Great Britain. After seeing this movie with some friends, they were spurred on while I was left completely disillusioned.
What am I doing in this life? Why do I even exist in this world? Am I actually living for things that matter? Am I just living autonomously or am I really partnering with the Lord in bringing His kingdom to the earth? All of my time throughout the day, all of my money, all of my energy--what is it unto? Yes, I found myself in the middle of the book of Ecclesiastes.
Well, after much soul-seeking and having words with the Lord, I came to a conclusion. There is only one thing that actually matters is knowing Him. I came into this world with nothing and I will leave it with nothing. During the in-between time, He has great plans for my life, but they're all unto this one thing.
In Matthew 25, there are ten virgins waiting for the return of the Bridegroom (Jesus); five were called wise by God and five were deemed foolish. Yet they all fell asleep. In the mundane of life, they all lived in the reality of going about as though things were normal. When finally the cry was heard that He is coming, the only ones who were ready to respond rightly were those who had stored up history in the prayerful knowledge of God (oil). The others actually were not able to respond, and they fell away from the Lord into apostasy and eternal damnation.
There is reason to tremble at the thought of not knowing Him. The only thing that God calls wise is sticking it out and contending to know Him intimately. How is this done? Day by day, with violent pursuit.

There are several other topics that I have in my mind, but these are the main three. If you do want to leave a remark, please comment not only on what I said, but what the Lord is putting on your heart during this season. Grace to you all!

Las Vegas

I'm not ready to post about the fast yet, but here's something you will want to check out in the meantime (especially my Renoites out there).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S729tElgf-Y

Also, if you're interested getting a understanding of what this 40 day fast is all about, listen to the messages on this site:

http://www.heburnsforme.com