Moving Mountains

The writer of Psalm 73 was bothered that he was having so many troubles while the ungodly were enjoying an easy life. Feeling abandoned by God, he was ready to give up. It seemed like all of his diligence, obedience, prayers, and Bible reading were in vain—he was running out of patience.

We've all been there. At such times, it seems like there is a mountain between us and the place we want to be—and we just don’t have the strength to get over it. Jesus said, “If you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it would move. Nothing would be impossible” (Matt. 17:20).

Jesus said our faith is like a seed, when planted in fertile soil, morphs into a plant or tree. He is saying that when we put even a little faith (that may be all we have!) into action, it will grow strong enough to empower us to move a mountain.

What is the mountain in your life? Loneliness, loss of a job, sickness, wounded relationship? Be encouraged. “Faith comes by hearing…the Word of God” (Ro. 10:17). And that Word will speak to your impossibilities. And nothing is impossible for God!

Don’t be Like a Rubber Band

As I have stated many times in this blog, God wants us to set our mind on the things above and not on things of earth. And in order to do that, He puts us through trials that cause us to look to Him for strength, perspective, and comfort. My friend Zac Poonen compares this to the stretching of a rubber band. Like a rubber band, our spirit is stretched to focus on eternal things. But unfortunately, once the trial is over, our mind, like the rubber-band relaxes to its normal position, our spirit relaxes, and our minds spring back to the things of earth.

In the 1970s, the word “détente” was used in a political reference to the general easing of relations between the Soviet Union and the United States: during the Cold War. The French word détente originally meant the releasing of crossbow strings—two warriors relaxing their bow strings. But in our war against sin and Satan, our bow strings should never be relaxed. We should allow all circumstances to keep us taut—meaning “not lagging behind in diligence, fervent in spirit” (Romans 12:11), alert, ever ready for an enemy who is constantly on the prowl to catch us (1 Peter 5:8).

Exercise Your Heart!

Today my brain hurts from reading so many scholarly books and journal articles for my theology classes. Last week, I read an article about how exercising your brain keeps you young. If I keep this up, I may live forever.

I’ve always known that a seminary is a dangerous place for one's spiritual vitality. The intellectual study of the Bible can dull an otherwise devoted lover of the Living Word. I am convinced that the road to heaven is strewn with those who have fallen by the sword of intellectualism, having ended up spiritually bankrupt because they failed to “watch over their heart with all diligence” (Prov. 4:23).

To the Hebrew reader, the "heart" was considered the seat of the will and thought—but much more than just thoughts and intellect. The heart is the whole "inner-life"—our thought-life, desires, affections, values, motivations, and choices. Emphasizing this, Jesus said: “a good person produces good deeds from a good heart” (Luke 6:45). Therefore, it behooves us to make sure that studying and reflecting on the Word of God has not become just a mental work-out, but a heartfelt discipline of love.

What’s in Your Bucket?

Years ago I met the senior pastor of a large church in Houston, Texas, Wallace Henley. Wallace grew up on a farm. And in his book, he presents the following analogy, comparing hearts to buckets.

In any farmyard, there are lots of buckets around—buckets full of ‘feed,’ buckets full of bolts, buckets full of dirt, buckets full of garbage... And when you bump into and/or kick over a bucket, whatever is ‘in’ the bucket is what will spill out. Wallace says people are like those farmyard buckets. When you meet (colloquially, we might say “run into” or “bump into”) a friend or acquaintance, whatever is in them will spill out. If they are anxious or perplexed about something, as soon as you begin talking to them, the thing making them anxious will spill out. If they are happy and excited, it will pour out. So if you listen to what spills out of a person, you will know what he is “full of."

Jesus said “For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.” (Luke 6:45). If you want to find out what's in someone's heart, just listen to his words.

But here’s something more personally helpful. If you want to know what is in your own heart, just listen to your words. Have you ever left a conversation with someone and immediately wondered why you brought up a subject you had no intention of talking about? It was in your heart! Pay attention to what spills out of your mouth; it will help you to discern the condition of your heart.

Listening to your own words is key for you to “Watch over your heart with all diligence” (Prov. 4:23).