1 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the wicked, Nor standeth in the way of sinners, Nor sitteth in the seat of scoffers: 2 But his delight is in the law of Jehovah; And on his law doth he meditate day and night. 3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the streams of water, That bringeth forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also doth not wither; And whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.4 The wicked are not so, But are like the chaff which the wind driveth away. 5 Therefore the wicked shall not stand in the judgment, Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. 6 For Jehovah knoweth the way of the righteous; But the way of the wicked shall perish.
Psalms 1:1-6 (ASV)
12 And because iniquity shall be multiplied, the love of the many shall wax cold. 13 But he that endureth to the end, the same shall be saved.
Matt 24:12-13 (ASV)

With the popularity and increased usage of community websites there have been reconnections with many people from the past. An integral part of participation on the sites is the exposure of feelings, activities, and photos. While it has been great to reconnect and renew relationships with those that are still so dear to the heart, there have also been disappointments as many who once appeared to have been close to the Father in their conversation and lifestyle are apparently in a state of separation from Him in their chosen behaviors. We are most certainly all in need of the grace and mercy of God on a daily basis, and it is not given to us to judge any. But, from the passages above there is an understanding that there is a long, fruitful life of abundance that is promised to those who choose the way of righteousness, while the way of the wicked has an undesirable result.

Somewhere through the passage of life, the challenges of relationships and the enticements of the world, there seems to be a natural tendency for ‘iniquity’ to increase along with a decreased love and passion for the presence of God. Considering how wonderful is His provision of life and how faithful He is to gratify every time His way is chosen, it brings great sadness to the heart to discover that there has been a lack of endurance in so many and a choice of temporal worldly gratification over the eternal significance of a God relationship. Although His grace is more than sufficient to restore and salvation is an ever present opportunity, the simple choices of life that may not appear to be all that wrong in themselves, have a power to lead a heart away from the only place of safety from the inevitable consequence of wickedness. It’s at the Father’s side that real living is known with a joy and happiness that carries no eventual regret and sorrow. With every yielding to His holiness is a reception of peace and confidence that no other choice can bring.

For so many that have been drawn away may there be an awakening this day to their misdirection, and may the goodness of God be seen as the clearly superior choice with the far greater reward and promise of fulfillment. And, let those who have found their place in Christ endure the deception of every lure of the flesh that would loosen the embrace of the only One who is true life and peace.

Luke 9:62 But Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the
plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.

I’m definitely not a farmer myself, but I did grow up in a part of the country where corn, sugar beets, and wheat covered a great deal of the countryside. And, I did get to work on some of the farms, driving tractor. While it was quite fascinating to watch the machinery work the ground, and though it was necessary to make certain that it was operating correctly from time to time, it was most important that the great majority of the focus be given to where the tractor was going rather than where it had been. Keeping the wheels headed straight down the rows really wasn’t all that difficult to maintain, but if for a second the front wheels were allowed to stray from the true straight line crossing the field, it would create a swerve in the rows that was unacceptable to any legitimate farmer. The days might get long, hot, and dusty, but the attention had to be kept on where the tractor was headed at all times, even during the occasional backward glance. Everything about where you’d been with that tractor would be clearly seen by anyone who might later drive by the field, and where you were looking while driving would be the greatest determining factor as to whether or not you created a success or a mess.

The end of the year is the usual time for retrospect, when experiences of the past year are acknowledged. There is power in this backward glance to maintain an assurance of operability and use those remembered moments for adjustments and lessons learned. However, there is also power in that backward glance if too extended to get completely off course and create an unacceptable past. There is one other power of the past, though, that has been provided for us in Christ, when the future is given significance and hope by the past we’ve been given in Him. Everything we’ve gone through, both good and bad, when taken to the cross can be part of His working all things together for our good. (Romans 8:28)

There is a significant work for each of us in the kingdom of God, all of which requires a forward focus, with only a backward glance that keeps things in the perspective of the cross. Victory, forgiveness, and especially the overcoming power of love are the lessons to be learned there, resulting in a heightened lively hope of a productive and gratifying life in Him.

Philippians 1:11 KJV
(11)  Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God.

Matthew 5:6 KJV
(6)  Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

If you watched these past Olympics for any period of time at all, you saw something about Michael Phelps, the great American swimmer. Even when other events were broadcast, there was usually a little news ticker either in the corner or on the bottom that kept you up to date on his next swimming event and his latest movements. Something else you might have heard about Michael from several different sources was how much food he consumes every day. Here is the list as it was reported:

-For breakfast: three fried egg sandwiches, with cheese, tomatoes, lettuce, fried onions and mayonnaise, followed by three chocolate-chip pancakes; a five-egg omelette; three sugar-coated slices of French toast and a bowl of grits (a maize-based porridge), washed down with two cups of coffee.

-For lunch: half a kilogram (one pound) of enriched pasta; two large ham and cheese sandwiches on white bread smothered with mayonnaise, washed down by energy drinks.

-For dinner: Another half-kilogram of pasta, perhaps with a carbonara sauce, followed by a large pizza and more energy drinks.

-That combination may not sound very healthy, and at a staggering 10,000 calories, would feed five average men for a day. (BBC)

After hearing this report and then looking his fat-free body standing next to the pool there are a few things that might be considered- the activity to which he is so faithful is requiring and getting a tremendous amount of fuel; to back off from the consumption would eliminate the possibility of success; that he better make some adjustments to his intake if he ever slows down on his swimming; he is enjoying food right now more than he ever will after his intense training agenda ends; he doesn’t ever skip a meal or forget to eat.

It’s interesting that the scriptures refer to the fruits of righteousness as something like food; that they will fill up and result in blessing for the one who consumes them. Like Michael meals, though, they have their greatest fulfillment and enjoyment as they are the requirement of a particularly intense regimen of pursuing God and His kingdom. It’s not possible to get very far with God skipping a meal here or there, and there is inversely a decrease of appetite for righteousness when the passionate pursuit of Him lessens. There is a purpose for being right in God that goes way beyond just enjoying a personal banquet. Partaking of the righteousness that is provided for us as a meal in Christ gives us the energy and power for the activity of righteousness, while living in love and vigorously seeking and acting out who we’ve been made to be in Christ causes those meals to be so much more greatly savored and enjoyed.

Getting in the pool today, making waves, splashing and keeping at it till the other end is reached will bring on this great appetite for a meal much larger than just a breakfast taco or bagel. What’s so great about sitting down at God’s table is that it’s one of those family style servings where you just keep piling on as much as you’re hungry for. May that hunger be a strong one brought on by intense activity that is faithful, obedient kingdom pursuit.

John 6:35 KJV
(35)  And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.

Isaiah 40:29  He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.

Several years ago I was in Zaire, Africa for a few months with missionaries Ralph and Shirley Hagemeir. Many parts of that continent have become westernized to a great deal, with many of the normal media and communications that we’ve become accustomed to in the US, but at that time Kalemie, Zaire was lacking telephone, television, and cell phone service, and the electricity, water, and fuel supply was intermittent and undependable. In particular, the fuel reserve was limited and dependent upon a fuel truck that would come from far away across rough roads. Our transportation into town and the trucks for construction were completely dependent upon diesel, and whenever the supply would run out there was great anticipation for the next delivery. We would find out from the attendant when the next truck was expected and would join the long line waiting for its arrival. All the vehicles would be filled up and then we also filled up several large fuel cans for our own reserve.  In order to function, though, and in order to have the necessary power to accomplish our purpose, it wasn’t enough to just have the vehicles we were blessed with, there was a continual need to wait at the station for their fuel to arrive. It was always such a relief when, after a period of walking and preserving every liter, we were able to freely go where we needed to go once more and fulfill our production plans.

Although there is normally an uninterrupted supply of fuel here in America, there still is a necessity for and dependence on the fuel that enables transportation and productivity. We are so incredibly dependent upon this source of power and strength that if it were ever interrupted for even a few days, our whole society would be shut down almost completely. It’s not enough to just own all these wonderful vehicles. For them to function as they so effectively do there is a frequent requirement for us of taking them to the filling station with an ability to pay and wait for the substance that empowers them to move.

I’ve gotten in trouble too many times when I’ve allowed the fuel to run out on my vehicle. For some reason I have this tendency to flirt with the E on the fuel gage, not wanting to take the time to stop and fuel up. I keep thinking I can make it just a little longer before having to stop, so in an attempt to save time I end up taking way more time walking to a gas station. If I’d only had the patience to just take a few moments, stop and fill up, I wouldn’t have had to sweat so much and go through the added stress and frustration. It wasn’t that the supply wasn’t available, like in Africa; it was just that I wasn’t willing to wait for it.

There is an abundant supply today for those willing to wait. For those who aren’t trying to find out just how far they can go before ‘E’ really means ‘E’ there is an ample supply of power giving substance that will never run dry as long as they’re willing to take the time for it. We’ve been incredibly blessed with material, mental, physical, emotional, financial, and spiritual capacities. They will ever be in need, though, of the fuel that empowers them to fulfill their purpose. There is a river, there is a well, there is a spring, and there is a rain of the Spirit that will ever be a provision of strength and power, enabling the production that is our purpose in Christ. Until we take the time to go to the river, draw from the well, kneel at the spring, and run in the rain, though, our strength will run out, leaving us powerless to get anywhere or accomplish anything. It will be such a relief to be among those who have waited at the pump, though, and have acquired the power to go, get there, conquer and accomplish what could have never been otherwise accomplished. 

Isaiah 40:30  Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:
:31  But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

Proverbs 16:25  There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.

Two men were given the challenge of making their way through a massive forest to a promised reward on another side. One man was given a compass, along with the prize’s coordinates, while the other man was given written instructions that included specific landmarks and warnings. The forest was full of paths going different directions, with obstacles around which the passage wasn’t all that obvious. As they set out on their quest it wasn’t long before their paths parted. At the first juncture in the road the man with the compass chose to go one way based upon what he knew about the position of natural elements and the compass, while the other man just went by what was written to do at this point in his instructions. Throughout their whole forest adventure, there would be ways that would ‘seem’ to be completely right based upon the information available to each one. Which one, though, would you say might reach his destination first- alive, healthy and happy?

Today there will be a plethora of choices presented to us as we navigate the forest of this life to a promised reward. We’ve actually been given what each of the men in this story had been given- both the natural means of ‘logically’ and mentally determining which way to go and where our life will lead us, and the detailed written instructions of the one who made the forest. What ‘seems’ to be right at each juncture will have everything to do with which option we choose to utilize. What ‘seems’ right naturally when we’re standing before a ravine or massive mountain will determine which direction we choose to go. While the natural direction (like the rookie plane pilot wanting to guide the plane into the ground because of what ‘seems’ right) may be pressing itself as the only possible option, there is an instruction from the Word that otherwise wouldn’t make any sense, but actually will be the only way around, over, or through to the prize. Give and you’ll receive. Be meek and you’ll obtain. A fight is averted not by strong rebuttal, but by a soft answer. Leap when there is nothing visible to keep from falling to the rocks far below. Though there may be consternation and trepidation as the first choice is made based upon the Father’s instructions, as each direction is followed and found to be dependable, there will be growing confidence in what ‘seems’ to be right because of God’s faithfulness.

They will ‘seem’ to be right today- the choices we make based upon our tools and acquired knowledge and skills, but there is an alternate way that with increased usage and dependence will become the only right choice. Any other option will never ‘seem’ to be right when the Father’s instructions have been found to be more than dependable.

Hebrews 4:1  Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it.

Philippians 3:17  Brethren, be followers together of me, and mark them which walk so as ye have us for an ensample.

Even though I grew up in a part of Colorado where you could look for miles and miles without seeing anything, including the mountains, I was very fortunate to have parents who grew up in the ‘colorful’ part. For our holidays and any other excuse we could come up with, we’d steal away to Grandma and Grandpa Behrman’s and Grampie and Grammie Shield’s houses in the small town of Buena Vista, nestled in a valley right next to the Continental Divide. My parents, having grown up there, knew many of the interesting places to go, where we might see incredible views, mountain goats, elk, or deer, and hear stories of mountain lions and other exciting tales of growing up in the high country during the depression. There was one old road that was visible along the other side of a river from the main highway upon which my Grandpa Behrman had actually driven a stage coach up to an old mining town called St. Elmo.

It was fun to drive around and see everything, but I was also fortunate to have a father who was really into much more than just seeing. He insisted on experiencing the beauty, the steepness, the wildlife, and the fish. There were days of elk hunting, fly fishing, and just sight seeing that would take us on a long trail up through the trees and over difficult pathways to the high places where you could look far and see only mountains. It was an incredible experience each time, but there were some things that were most challenging, especially those first years of attempting to follow my Dad along the mountain trails. First of all those trails and streams and woods were hard to navigate. Then, my Dad had grown up there and was so much bigger and longer and stronger than me that there was no way I was going to keep up with him and his quest to conquer whatever we were scaling that day. It was like he was this massive giant doing things with ease that required such a great deal of effort for me to even attempt. Then he would be continually encouraging me on, letting me know that it was best not to sit down even while resting during the ascent, as it would keep your legs warm and resist tightening. Though it would seem almost impossible and I probably never could have done it alone, by just pressing on to somehow keep up with my Dad’s footsteps, there were places, tastes, smells, aches, growth, and fellowship I got to experience that I would not trade for any time of leisure and repose that might have been my option. The inspiration, motivation, and reward of the challenge met would carry me through many more steep challenges that would be part of my life, and by following my Dad (not just by his climbing example) I learned to press forward with no other option but to overcome.

To get there, to arrive, to experience, to grow, and to overcome will require an effort that sometimes might seem overwhelming and mountainous. Seeing the giants easily leap over streams and ascend rocky paths might tend to magnify weakness, frailty, and seeming insignificance, but even though our feet may never grow to their size and our feats may never seem to compare to their amazing ones, there is a way for us up that same path they are taking if we will but listen to their encouragement, lifting our feet and pressing on. It will always be good to drive around and see the sights, but to really experience the life that awaits us in God, it will take so much more than just looking for a place to sit down. As the muscles burn, our breath gets heavy, and we become light headed, there is an assurance with each Spirit followed step, that we are moving towards something that will have no regrets and no possible comparison with the alternatives. And, after some time of growing and experiencing Him, with whatever size we reach, it will be good to begin leaping, ascending, and encouraging as an example and inspiration for those that are just beginning their mountain experience. It’s about everyone going there together and finding that all things are possible when we but follow as we are shown.

Philippians 3:14  I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
:15  Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you.

Gal 5:7 Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth?
Gal 5:12 I would they were even cut off which trouble you.

So just how important is this race in which we’ve been entered? How significant is it to complete this course and fulfill its purpose? This is obviously a perception that is subject to influence and vulnerable to the ingestion of a diverting focus or interest.

You know, starting off on a course is quite often the easiest part. It’s when the idea of acquiring the prize has yet to come against its greatest opposition. Although it may be difficult to just get to the starting line and actually enter the race, and while there may be a warming up period, especially the older you get, once the gun goes off, at least everyone’s headed in the right direction and in their assigned lanes. If it were just a 50 or 100 yard dash it might be more feasible to at least finish the course, but the particular running that’s referred to here is cross country and long distance. There will be a leg of it to be run every day that we live and each one of those legs is incredibly important in its function of propelling us closer to the prize of a fulfilled purpose in Christ.

This is a race that is destined for many alterations of terrain and various challenging obstacles, but the greatest hindrance to actually making it to the end is more often than not an inner challenge or diversion rather than anything outward. Maybe it is something that has been physically ingested, or possibly someone has been allowed to alter the conviction of just how important it is to complete this course. Having been given this incredible destination of unequaled magnitude and greatness; having been provided the most gratifying means of arriving at that destination, we will be most hindered in getting there by what is allowed to fill us, surround us and who we allow to affect the impression of our treasure’s importance. If we can be diverted by an illness, if what we are looking at or hearing is calling us to another passion, and, if the people that have our ear are causing the beauty and glory of our promised land to diminish at all in its place of honor in our hearts, these inward challenges will deplete the very source of our motivating drive- our vision.

Jesus had this incredible purpose of unparalleled significance. He came to this earth for the greatest reason of redeeming all of mankind from bondage to sin and death. This is what was set before Him, but throughout His life I’m sure He had endless opportunities to have other passions supplant His fixation on His ultimate destination. According to earthly standards, dying on the cross wouldn’t appear to be the Father’s best or the reward of a righteous life. What waited beyond that obstacle, however, was the focus of His heart. He protected this focus and kept it above all others as they presented themselves.

At an early age Jesus’ parents impressed on Him the importance of family, to which He replied that He had to be about His Father’s business. It wasn’t that He didn’t appreciate His parents or His responsibility to them, but, as close as they were to His heart, He had found a focus that He couldn’t allow to be diminished by family ties.

I’m sure that Jesus could have and would have been the most financially prosperous person of His time had that ever been a part of His ultimate destination. Whenever presented with the importance of riches, however,- the rich young ruler, Mary’s costly oil, taxes, and the significance of the temple riches- Jesus appeared to almost look down on them as not worthy of any prolonged consideration. Rising far above them in His priority structure was the importance of laying down one’s life. Even if He had ever risen to wealth by worldly standards, there could never have been a regard for those riches with any level of equality to His higher purpose.

Socially and relationally Jesus was very active. He went to wedding feasts, frequented public gatherings, and hung out with those He chose as friends for much of His recorded life. Whenever these relationships, however, challenged the importance of His elevated focus, He quickly brought things into perspective once again. Although He loved Peter very dearly, Jesus didn’t hesitate to identify and locate satan as the source of Peter’s comment when it countered what He had just prophesied about His own death. A true savoring of the things of God could not tolerate a desire for the base things of this world.

For those who have made the start and are even now running towards that higher destination in Christ, there will be people and things that will potentially hinder the progress that is so essential to knowing the fullness of God’s purpose. While each of these things may be worthwhile and honorable in themselves, whenever they begin to hinder in any way our progress in Christ, they must be identified and put in their place. No matter the value or significance of that person or thing, if it in any way alters or reduces our focus on the prize, our vision of the promise, or our taste for God’s things, this must be identified and adjustments applied if there is to be any progress made. These adjustments will not come just by acknowledgement of their need alone, though. Where there is a developed taste for these things, it can only really be removed by a renewed appreciation for our race’s destination, our completed purpose in Him. Allowing Jesus to rise once again in clarity and focus will bring into perspective the reality of those other hindrances and their rightful place. Anything that would inhibit passionate pursuit of God’s way will be shunned and despised in the atmosphere of His revealed presence and purpose.