Randy Alcorn's Blog, page 179

Purposefully Meditating on God’s Word

Nothing so cultivates the inner person and enriches our relationship with God as biblical meditation. Meditation is the process of pondering, musing, and reflecting upon God and His truth. In the process, our hearts are drawn to God, our thoughts are filled with His thoughts. Ultimately our behavior becomes like Christ’s.

Meditation is more than reading the Bible. It is musing upon it, rehearsing it prayerfully and thoughtfully. It is not swallowing Scripture whole, but chewing long and hard before digesting it. As a therapy for stress, meditation is often superior to medication. It is during prayerful, Christ-centered meditation that the peace of God is experienced and the inner life is bolstered to withstand the pressures of the outer life.

There is really no secret to meditation. All of us do it daily. We may meditate on a novel, a TV program, a sermon, a song, a shopping list, a friend, or this morning’s sidewalk sale. Right now you’re meditating on this blog. We all do it. The key to meditation is its object.

Biblical meditation focuses on God:

1. His attributes: “Within your temple, O God, we meditate on your unfailing love” (Psalm 48:9).

2.  His works: “I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. I will meditate on all your works and consider all your mighty deeds” (Psalm 77:11–12).

3. His Word: “I meditate on your precepts and consider your ways. I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word” (Psalm 119:15–16).

Copying Scripture and carrying it with us throughout the day, reading it and memorizing it, makes God’s Word a part of us. As Paul wrote, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly” (Colossians 3:16).

We like to hear seven methods and five easy steps and three proven secrets to the Christian life. But there are no shortcuts to spirituality. There is no pill that makes us godly. We become more Christ-like only as we take pains to focus our gaze on Christ. As we meditate on Him, we become increasingly like Him: “But we all, with unveiled face beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory” (2 Corinthians 3:18, NASB).

          

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Thanks to those who entered last week's Eternity graphic novel giveaway!

The randomly drawn winners are:

Jan Harmon (girlsnana@)
Kelley Bagby (kelley@)
Monica Garcia (monicajo83@)
Patti Tryal (patti.tryal@)
Peter Franck (pfranck44@)

Winners will be contacted by email.

The Courage to Follow Him

It’s not always pleasant to talk about the things God’s Word says. When I meditate on Scripture, it’s very common for me to become uncomfortable by what I am reading. But to follow Christ is not about being comfortable—it’s about being sold-out to the God with the nailed-scarred hands, being radical for Him, standing up for Him, and speaking the truth in love, with grace.

Follow the Lord wherever He is leading you, then depend upon Him to give you more courage to take the next step. “If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him” (John 12:26).

Whatever we lose today in humble service to Christ, we will regain a trillion times over in the long tomorrow. “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it” (Luke 9:23–24).

Perspectives from God’s Word

“Whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it” (Mark 8:35).

“Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might” (Ephesians 6:10).

Perspectives from God’s People

“Courage seems a contradiction: a strong desire to live taking the form of a readiness to die.” —G. K. Chesterton

“It is easier to find a score of men wise enough to discover the truth than to find one intrepid enough, in the face of opposition, to stand up for it.” —A. A. Hodge

          

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Eternity Graphic Novel Giveaway

This week we’re giving away 5 copies of Randy’s graphic novel Eternity, which is based on Christ’s story of the rich man and Lazarus found in Luke 16. If you’re not familiar with the term, a graphic novel is an extended comic book form (128 pages, over 600 panels of full-color art). It was recently nominated as one of the five finalists for the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA) Children’s Book of the Year award. Though it didn’t win we were encouraged by the nomination!

Since its release last June, our ministry has received some great comments from readers of all ages, including this 12 year old: “I read your graphic novel Eternity, and I really liked it. I was at camp this week and felt God working in me through the book. I loved how you portrayed Heaven and Hell in this story. This really made me wonder if I was really saved, and this week I think was the week of my true salvation. I hope that this same thing will happen to others who read this book!”

On the other end of the age spectrum, an 89-year-old reader wrote us to say, “I could not put Eternity down until I finished it!” We’re grateful that readers are enjoying the book, and pray that many will come to salvation through Christ because of its message.

To enter the novel giveaway, please fill out the form below by 9 p.m. PT (12 a.m. ET) on Thursday, May 8 (go to the blog post if you're reading by email or on another feed). We'll announce the winners in Randy’s blog post on Monday, May 12.

By the way, through this Friday, EPM is offering Eternity for $10 (retail $16.99). This book is a great tool for sharing the gospel with those who may not be attracted to traditional books. The illustrations are stunning! Offer expires Friday, May 9, 11:59 p.m. PT.

Stephanie Anderson
EPM Staff

Oregon’s Natural Beauty Reflects Its Creator’s Magnificence

The heavens were made by the word of the Lord,
and all the stars, by the breath of His mouth.
He gathers the waters of the sea into a heap;
He puts the depths into storehouses.

Let the whole earth tremble before the Lord;
let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.
For He spoke, and it came into being;
He commanded, and it came into existence. (Psalm 33:6-9, HCSB)

I was born in Portland, Oregon and raised in Gresham, Oregon, where I live today. I think the rugged beauty of Oregon's coastline (where I've gone often on vacation, to speak and to write), and the rural green trees and hillsides that have always surrounded me have made me alert to the beauty of God's creation.

The frequently gray skies and rain, in the winter, create a mood conducive to reflection and contemplation of life's meaning. I have meditated on Scripture and great books and have soaked them in while hearing the rain fall or the wind blow, or looking out at blue skies or stars. I've gone riding many times on the Springwater Corridor Trail, and breathed the fresh Oregon air, watching for deer, rabbits and beavers and thoroughly enjoying the Creator's art work.

This beautiful 4-minute time lapse video uses footage shot in Oregon:

The earth and everything in it,
the world and its inhabitants,
belong to the Lord;
for He laid its foundation on the seas
and established it on the rivers. (Psalm 24:1-2, HCSB)

I always think, if this kind of beauty remains in this fallen creation, what will God's resurrected world, the New Heavens and the New Earth, be like?! Since we know there’s going to be a New Earth and New Jerusalem, why not a New London, New Bejing, and a New Oregon? And a resurrected version of the places you love most, on a planet without pain (Revelation 21:4)?

          

Our Lord and God! You are worthy to receive glory, honor, and power. For you created all things, and by your will they were given existence and life. (Revelation 4:11, GNT)

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Field Trip to a Junkyard

How can we teach our children the emptiness of materialism in a direct and memorable way? Take them to a garage sale and show them how things that people spent great amounts of money on are now sold for pennies.

Or, take them to visit a dump or junkyard. It can actually be a great family event. (The lines are shorter than at amusement parks, admission is free, and little boys love it.) Show them all the piles of “treasures” that were formerly Christmas and birthday presents. Point out things costing hundreds of dollars, that children quarreled about, friendships were lost over, honesty was sacrificed for, and marriages broke up over. Show them the remnants of battered dolls, rusted robots, and crashed cars. Let them look at the expensive furniture and electronic gadgets that now lie useless. Point out to them that nearly everything your family owns will one day end up in a junkyard like this.

Then read, or ask them to read, 2 Peter 3:10-14, which says when Christ returns the whole world “will be destroyed by fire” and “the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.” Ask them the ultimate question: “When all that you owned lies abandoned, broken, burned and useless, what will you have done that will last for eternity?”

What will survive the coming holocaust of things? The answer is, only God, His Word and people. Explain to your children how life should be invested in the eternal. Read to them Matthew 6:19-25, where Jesus says, “Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven.” Tell them “you can’t take it with you,” but according to Jesus, you can send it on ahead!

          

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Overcoming Temptation by Looking Past It—and Looking Up

Temptations always look good—otherwise they wouldn't be temptations. Resisting temptation is a gutsy, courageous, stubborn refusal to violate God's law. It’s recognizing and avoiding the devastating consequences when we choose sin. And it's repeatedly calling upon the indwelling Christ and Holy Spirit for the strength to say "no" to the world, the flesh, and the devil—to say "yes" to God instead. We do this in pursuit of the ultimate joy only found in knowing God. 

When my thirst for joy is satisfied by Christ, sin becomes unattractive. I say no to the passing pleasures of immorality, not because I do not want pleasure, but because I want true pleasure, a greater and lasting pleasure that can only be found in Christ.

John Piper says,

The fire of lust’s pleasures must be fought with the fire of God’s pleasures. If we try to fight the fire of lust with prohibitions and threats alone—even the terrible warnings of Jesus—we will fail. We must fight it with a massive promise of superior happiness. We must swallow up the little flicker of lust’s pleasure in the conflagration of holy satisfaction.

Those who drink of immorality—or any kind of sin—are never satisfied (John 4:13). Those who drink of Jesus are fully satisfied (John 6:35). I can either have my thirst quenched in Jesus, or I can plunge deeper into sin in search of what’s not to be found there.

In this video from Desiring God, Ben Stuart offers advice for overcoming temptation: looking down stream to anticipate where the temptation leads, and looking upstream to God.

"No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it" (1 Cor. 10:13).

          

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The Treasure Principle and God’s Delightfully Surprising Ways

The Treasure Principle is a book that has shocked me (surprise isn’t strong enough) in the response it has generated. It has sold nearly 2 million copies in English, been translated into 20 languages (including Chinese, Vietnamese, Indonesian and Arabic), and used of God to help launch the ministry of Generous Giving. It is often given away by churches to their entire congregations.

The year it was released, Rick Warren asked me to speak on it at Saddleback Church where they gave away 14,000 copies in one day, which launched the book’s sales. Here’s my message I shared there in its entirety:

A story—I made a Treasure Principle related comment on a panel at a Generous Giving conference where they gave away the book, and a year later one man told me (after he’d already done it) he had decided to give away 37 million dollars to God’s kingdom.

I’d also like to share a couple of reader responses to the book EPM has received over the years:

I read The Treasure Principle and my wife and I committed to giving 20% of our income for kingdom work above and beyond our tithes by the end of 2011. Over the past year we have added giving to Ligonier Ministries, a widow who does not make ends meet in our neighborhood, and another missionary couple. God has been good to us, as I was out of work (except for some odd jobs, and my wife does not work) for 6 months last year. He had provided for all our needs, as my wife and I resolved in our hearts that we would not let His kingdom work suffer because we may. We paid our tithes first, our missionaries second, and our bills last. We never had a bill that went unpaid on time. — C. H., Pastor

God has used The Treasure Principle book and a mission trip to totally transform my life and vision. My husband and I have been giving out the book (we bought 48 of them at Christmas) to whoever the Lord lays on our heart. We are excited to be giving more and more financially to various ministries. What freedom it is to come to the understanding that we are stewards of His money, His time, His life in us. We lead a small group of young marrieds at church and this book will be featured in our next study. — M. R.

These are just a few of the hundreds of stories I’ve been told, and usually you only hear a fraction of them. God has used this book to impact lives and fund missions in ways that far outweigh anything I’ve done or will ever do—which brings tears to my eyes whenever I think of it.

God is kind and gracious. Sometimes what we do is way overblown in our thinking—and other times we do what seems a small thing (e.g. writing that book) and God takes it way beyond anything we could have imagined. He is faithful and sometimes delightfully surprising!

          

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From Eternal Perspective Ministries

Lowest price of the year on The Treasure Principle! EPM price $5 (retail $12.99) now until May 2, 11:59 p.m. PT. This exclusive EPM edition includes a special note to readers from Randy. To order see, www.epm.org/treasureprinciple.

Here are some ideas for passing on this message of generous, joyful giving:

Give the book to friends and family members.
Consider underwriting the cost of giving the book to your church body.
Lead a small group at your church based on The Treasure Principle. (Study materials are also available.)
Ask your pastor to consider sharing on the topic. (EPM offers free resources for pastors, including a pastors’ kit.)
Share your own story of generous giving with EPM. (Send it through our contact form.)

“Supercharged with stunning, divine truth! Lightning struck over and over as I read it.” —John Piper

“I enthusiastically endorse The Treasure Principle. I hope millions will read and apply it.” —Ronald W. Blue, Founder and CEO, Ronald Blue & Company 

What about student debt?

Question from a reader:

A new study shows that 70% of college students will graduate with student debt (on average over $35K). Yet, I don’t hear much commentary from our churches about this. Given the high cost of education today, what Biblical principles can help us approach student debt in a God-honoring way?

Here are some thoughts:

The New American Standard Bible translates Romans 13:8 as “Owe nothing to anyone.” This would appear to prohibit debt. The New International Version reads, “Let no debt remain outstanding.” This translation would allow debt, but insists it be paid off as soon as possible.

Hudson Taylor and Charles Spurgeon believed that Romans 13:8 prohibits debt altogether. However, if going into debt is always sin, it's difficult to understand why Scripture gives guidelines about lending and even encourages lending under certain circumstances. Proverbs 22:7 says “the borrower is servant to the lender.” It doesn't absolutely forbid debt, but it's certainly a strong warning.

If you’re considering going into student debt, I encourage you to seek the Lord’s will through the reading and study of His Word, prayer, and the wise counsel of others before you make the decision to take out a loan. (I emphasize “wise” to discourage you from seeking counsel from someone who believes that debt is normal and no big deal.)

Often, there are ways to avoid debt or at least excess debt while in school. This might include choosing a less expensive college, attending a community college for two years before transferring to another school, working while in school, living at home, and evaluating your lifestyle standards and making changes accordingly. (Where in the Bible does it say we should go to an expensive university rather than a community college?) But by all means, seek the Lord and give God the opportunity to provide through supernatural means before you take out debt. (In this article, I share some self-examining questions about debt as well as Scripture on the subject.)

If you’re already dealing with paying off student debt, realize that to change the direction of our lives we need to prayerfully make wise decisions. Nothing is wiser than giving first to God, cutting back our expenditures wherever we can, and systematically paying off our debts to others, having placed ourselves through our faithful giving under God's blessing instead of His curse. (On my blog, I share some thoughts about giving while paying down debt.)

          

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God Working in You, and You Working to Follow God

Scripture says of believers, “His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness” (2 Pet. 1:3). So what do we need to live righteously that He has not given us in Christ? Nothing.

The source of strength we call upon is not merely our own, which is insufficient, but God’s, which is infinitely powerful. God says, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor. 12:9). You bring the weakness, He brings the power.

Does any of this imply that it doesn’t take a lot of effort to live the Christian life? Of course not. But notice the intertwining of effort in this partnership with God—“To this end I labor, struggling with all his energy, which so powerfully works in me” (Col. 1:29). We must make every effort to be righteous, to obey Him, to avoid sinful thoughts and actions. Yet all the while we must do this appealing to His strength, not our own.

One caution is important here. Some people approach the concept of “allowing God to work through me” as if it were some passive condition whereby God invades you and takes over, automatically causing you to live righteously, bypassing your own will. Not true. The spiritual life is warfare. To win the fight you must take on the armor of God and wield the sword of God’s Word, which requires diligence and hard work (Eph. 6:10-18). As J. I. Packer says in his book Keep in Step with the Spirit, “The Christian’s motto should not be ‘Let go and let God’ but ‘Trust God and get going!’”

There is no contradiction between God working in you and you working to follow God. This is the nature of the spiritual partnership He establishes with us. He works, and so must we. If you pray that God will keep your thoughts sexually pure, then turn around and look at pornography, you act in contradiction to your prayer, showing it to be only words. You must demonstrate that you are serious about your prayer by taking all the steps to avoid sexual immorality of the mind and body. In other words, it matters what you do.

          

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Walking through Depression: God Is With You

I have known depression first-hand at different times in my life. Several years ago, for no apparent reason, a cloud of depression descended on me. Day after day, it was my constant companion. God used it in my life, teaching me to trust Him, and giving me some intimate times with Him. I studied the life of Charles Spurgeon who battled depression, and found comfort in the fact that godly men and women had walked the same path I was walking.

I saw this experience as part of living under the Curse, and it made me appreciate more deeply the promise of God, “No longer will there be any more curse” (Revelation 22:3). Though I had written a number of books about the world to come, including Heaven, I came to long for it more deeply than ever, clinging to God’s promise for the resurrection and the New Earth.

I blogged about my depression, and in particular about Spurgeon’s experience, and many people wrote me and told their own stories. One morning, after four months of daily depression, I woke up, no longer depressed. I don’t know why it came or went, but I am certain God was involved in both its coming and going.

In this ten-minute video interview with Desiring God’s David Mathis, I talk about some things I learned while experiencing depression, and share what helped me during that time:

If you are dealing with depression, it may be short-term, or it may be long-term, but if you are God’s child, know this—it is temporary, and “the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us” (Romans 8:18, NASB). For sure, all depression and all unhappiness will end when we meet Jesus. After relating God’s revelation of us embarking into our resurrected lives on the New Earth, the apostle John said this:

And I heard a loud voice from the throne [the voice of Jesus] saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.  He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."  He who was seated on the throne said, "I am making everything new!" Then he said, "Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true" (Revelation 21:3-5).

          

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