A Prayer for Sanity

What will be going through my head all night long during our New Year's Eve Lock-in...

Dear Jesus,

Lock-ins are my job, that much I knew;
Thank you again for creating Mt. Dew.

You've led me to this church and made me the youth pastor,
When chasing after teens tonight please make me run faster.

Scratches I expect, bruises I assume;
But please, Jesus please, no emergency room.

When things slow down and get tired I might,
Sleep is no option, I'm up for the night.

When morning comes and everyone says goodbye
Even yet I can't sleep. Go Illini!!!

Quick Preview

In January we will spend 4 weeks looking into 4 different types of prayers in youth group...

1. Prayer of Adoration
2. Prayer of Thanksgiving
3. Prayer of Petition
4. Prayer of Confession

I look forward to tieing the last couple months together and providing practical ways we can incorporate all we've been examining.

A snack for the brain...

Here's a few good quotes from the book I'm currently reading: "Making Disciples One Conversation At A Time" by D. Michael Henderson.

"The secret to a more fruitful ministry is not learning slick, packaged presentation techniques. The key is following Jesus more closely. We improve our work by improving our walk."

"Our first priority as branches is not to produce fruit; it is to abide in the Vine."

"Ministry is not something you go into, it's something that comes out of you."

This seem to be somewhat backwards thinking compared to popular beliefs, but then again so were most of the things Jesus himself said.

Prayer Part 4

Last week we laid some groundwork so that we could dive into the question of whether or not God changes his mind. For a quick recap see Prayer Part 3 below. This week we look at a prayer in the Bible by a man named Hezekiah.

Hezekiah was king of Judah for 29 years. He was a good king according to 2 Kings 18:3. We see that he generally did what was right in the eyes of God. When Hezekiah was 39 years old something bad happened. Hezekiah found out that he had a terminal disease. The reason he knew it was terminal is that God told him he was going to die. Most people don't have the luxury of knowing they are going to die, but Hezekiah did.

When Hezekiah found this out he prayed to God. Read Isaiah 38:1-9 to get a firm grasp on the story. Hezekiah prays a heartfelt prayer in which he begins to weep bitterly. Emotion was flowing from the king of Judah. The prayer was seemingly one of honesty and heartfelt emotion. God then did something amazing in Hezekiah's life...he answered the prayer and gives Hezekiah 15 more years to live.

Pretty cut and dried right? It'd be nice. There is a small problem with this. God already told Hezekiah what his will was (that Hezekiah would die). Did God then change his mind and allow Hezekiah the desires of his heart? Let's look at what happens after the healing to straighten things out.

In chapter 39 of Isaiah some dignitaries from Babylon heard about the healing and decided to come check things out. What they arrived they inquired about how Hezekiah was healed. Does Hezekiah give glory to God by telling how the miracle took place? Nope. Instead he got proud and showed them all the riches and wealth he owned. Rather than give God glory he took all the credit for the riches that were given to him by God in the first place. Not only does Hezekiah not have the right to brag about the riches God gave him, he also would be dead if it were not for God intervening.

The dignitaries then leave and Isaiah brings a message from God: Due to Hezekiah's pride, his possessions and some of his descendants will be carried away to Babylon. Does Hezekiah morn because of his actions? No, instead he rejoices that this curse will not take place during his lifetime.

To further make matters worse Hezekiah has a child during these final 15 years of his life. This isn't such a bad thing except his son's name was Manasseh. One could make a case for Manasseh being the worst king in the history of Israel. Not only did he worship idols in Jerusalem but he also led all the people in idol worship as well. A good argument can be made for at least part of the exile to Babylon taking place directly because of Manasseh's actions.

Back to the problem of whether or not it's a good thing Hezekiah's prayer was answered. It's a little more cloudy now isn't it? If Hezekiah dies his family and possessions aren't carried off to Babylon and his evil son Manasseh is never born. Hezekiah would have died 15 years sooner but this was seemly in God's perfect will. If it wasn't in God's perfect will to answer Hezekiah's prayer then why did he?

When things get complicated there's one place we should look: Jesus. A surprisingly similar story happens in the gospels. In Luke 22:39-46 Jesus is in the garden praying before he gets arrested. Look at how these two stories are similar. Jesus and Hezekiah both know they are soon going to die. They both feel they don't deserve to die. They both have the desire within them to live. The big difference in the stories comes at the end of both. Hezekiah asked God for what was on his heart and God gave it to him. Jesus asked God for what was on his heart but knew God's will was better and consequently was obedient to that will.

That's the bottom line. An answered prayer should not always be cause for celebration. An answered prayer that is in line with God's perfect will is what we should celebrate.

Bottom line from these passages:
1. We should pray to God about what's on our hearts.
2. In the end, we should allow our will to conform to God's, not the other way around.

Disclaimer...
Just because God answered Hezekiah's prayer doesn't mean God will give us whatever we ask for every time, even though it may not be in his perfect will. God is still God and can say no to any prayer that we pray. Hezekiah's prayer was answered but that doesn't mean ours have to be as well. Prayer should not be begging as in Hezekiah's case, but a conformity to God's perfect will as in Jesus' case.

These are the conclusions I've come to from reading the texts. Please dialogue with me if you see differently. Here are some other passages to read on the subject: Exodus chapter 32 (especially verse 14), Jonah chapter 3, 2 Samuel chapter 8, and Number chapter 11.

Picture from: http://www.cartoonstock.com/newscartoons/cartoonists/mba/lowres/mban1431l.jpg

Prayer Part 3

This week we looked at a tough question about prayer: Does God change his mind when we pray? While we didn't quite look for an answer this week we laid some groundwork so that we can begin to find an answer to our question.

What really do we mean when we ask "Does God change his mind?" As I look at that statement something jumps out at me. In order for us to believe that God changes his mind we must believe that he has a perfect plan he longs for us to follow. Now, since we have free will as humans, it is our choice whether or not we follow this plan God has for us. While God has a specific choice he longs for us to make we are in no way forced to make that certain choice.

*Disclaimer* Some would say that once you veer from this 'perfect path' God's plan is forever thwarted. Example: If I marry the wrong person, the person my spouse was supposed to marry would marry the wrong person, and then the person they were supposed to marry would marry the wrong person, all the way until no one marries the person God has for them ever again. I don't follow this line of thinking. Keep reading to see my thoughts on this.

Before we try to answer a question about God that is somewhat confusing...let's look at 4 things we know about God to be true.

1. Evil is not God's will (2 Peter 3:9)
God does not directly will evil, even though it is allowed to occur by divine permission. The suffering that exists in the world takes place as a result of God's accommodation to finite free will, but it is not God's ultimate will for humanity. Basically, God could force us not to sin, but then our free will would no longer exist, stopping us from truly being able to love and worship God as we are created to do.

2. God brings good (Romans 8:28)
God in His omnipotence (all powerful) utilizes evil and suffering for the good. For example, suffering can be used as a means by which to make a person stronger or more dependent on God. Ultimately, God would not have permitted any evil unless He could draw some good out of it.

3. God is redeeming (1 John 4:14)
God in His love responds to the suffering that arises from evil in the world. God presently works to heal the distorted conditions in humanity, as well as in the world through His grace and redemption. Basically, God does not simply practice damage control, trying to bring good out of bad as the only means to counter evil. God is at work actively providing an end to evil in the world.

4. God has the final word (Revelation 20:14)
In an eschatological (end times) age to come, God is going to finally and conclusively deal with evil. In the final judgment at the end of history the problems of suffering and evil will be solved. At that point in time, the full intention of God for creation will be brought to completion.

Here's my take on the above statement regarding God's perfect plan. I believe that, yes, God does have a perfect plan for each and every person on earth. I also believe that each and every person on earth has the choice to follow that plan or stray from it. In every circumstance I believe God has one decision he longs for us to make. As humans who are tempted we sometimes fail to make the right decision. However, I do not believe that one can never recover after they initially stray from God's plan due to the chain of events that happen from our one wrong decision. I believe that in every situation which follows God has a choice he longs for us to make. Each time we either follow God's path for our lives or go our own way. Each day, each hour, each circumstance we have a choice. No matter what we choose God can still use us for his glory (see point 2 above).

That being said...does God change his mind regarding what his perfect plan for us in each circumstance entails? Tune in next time...


Please respond with any thoughts, suggestions, questions you have, especially if something isn't clear. As I work through this I'd love to hear different points of view.