2019-08-25 Holiness Opens Doors

Invocation

Lord of all creation,

we pause before you today,

laying our hectic lives on the altar before you. Summer's warmth and rest are almost gone,

and our minds are turning to the time ahead: students and educators are thinking about school; farmers are thinking about crops and fall harvests; business people are thinking about profit margins and quarterly reports;

politicians are thinking about elections;

retailers are thinking about the holidays.

As we bow our heads before you,

help us put aside today's worries

and tomorrow's fears,

that we may worship and revel

in your presence today. Amen.

Holiness Opens Doors

“I am God Almighty; walk before me and be blameless. I will confirm my covenant between me and you.” GENESIS 17:1–2

Quite simply, our deep gratitude to Jesus Christ is manifested neither in being chaste, honest, sober and respectable, nor in church-going, Bible-toting and Psalm-singing, but in our deep and delicate respect for one another. —THE RAGAMUFFIN GOSPEL, BRENNAN MANNING[*]

            Think - the door is always open, never closed, to the choices we may make.  Success is making life choices that please God.  For people in this community of faith, the challenge for us is not so much a personal relationship with Christ a. k. a. being born again, saved.  This decision was made years ago.  For most people in this community of faith the challenge is holiness.  By holiness I mean, the challenge is to live Christlike.  The challenge to develop a Christlike character.  It is to live a life prompted and motivated by the Holy Spirit. 

First Things

            I would like to set the ground work for talking about holiness.  As Anne Graham Lotz writes, “God has no back-room, smoke-and-mirrors, clandestine relationships.”[†]  We know God supremely in Jesus Christ.  The beginning of holiness starts with a relationship with Jesus.  “…if there is any doubt whatsoever that you are in a covenant relationship with God, make sure. Right now. Confess your sins. Ask for forgiveness and for cleansing. Accept Jesus’ gift of salvation.”[‡]Sometimes, we think that beginning a covenant relationship with God is the end game of being religious.  If we think this way, our thinking is short-sighted. 

The Goal of Holiness

            I love the writings of Eli Stanley Jones. He was widely recognized as one of the greatest missionaries of the twentieth century.  E. Stanley Jones influenced world changers like President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Gandhi, and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  He was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1962 and received the Gandhi Peace Award in 1963.  He gave us the term, “Christlike,” in his book, “The Christ of the Indian Road.”  

            Dr. Jones laid out the motive and end of holy living.  The goal of Christian mission is “to produce Christlike character.”  There is nothing higher for God or for people then to be Christlike.  

            Jones writes, “I know nothing higher for God. If God in character is like Jesus, He is a good God and trustable.  The present-day doubt is not concerning Christ, but concerning God.  [People] wonder if there can be a good God back of things when they see earthquakes wipe out the innocent and the guilty alike ad innocent little children suffer under nameless diseases that they did not bring on themselves.  But the distracted doubting mind turns with relief toward Jesus and says, “If God is like that, [God] is all right.””

            “…I know nothing higher for people than to be Christlike.  The highest adjective descriptive of character in any language is the adjective “Christlike.” No higher compliment can be paid to human nature then to be called Christlike. … This is what we are trying to produce.  We think it is worthwhile to produce Christlike character.  Do you know anything finer and better?  Do you know of any nobler goal?  Is there any pattern which you have conceived that surpasses this in being just what life ought to be?  If so, show us, and we will, before God, we will leave this and seek the other.”[§]

Is it possible to be Christlike?

            For the answer to this question, I turn to John Wesley.  Wesley uses terms like “justification”, “perfection” and “sanctification” to describe being Christlike or holy.  Summarizing, there is such a thing as perfection; for it is again and again mentioned in Scripture.  It is not so early as justification; for a justified person is to “go on unto perfection” (He 6:1). It is not so late as death; for St. Paul speaks of living ones that were perfect (Ph 3:15).  It is not absolute.  Absolute perfection belongs not to people, nor to angels, but to God alone.  It does not make a person infallible: none is infallible while in this body.  It is salvation from sin.  It is perfect love (1 John 4:18). It is improvable.  It is capable of being lost.  It is a gradual work.  

What is it like?

            Christlike character looks like the highest ideals and aspirations of humanity.  Christlike character give people a free, full life and gives them God.  Christlike character has a heart that has learned to love Christ most irresistibly when a person thinks of Christ as hungry, thirsty, sick, in prison, naked, a stranger in the throbbing needs of our brothers and sisters.  “We take them Christ—we go to Christ.  Christ is the motive and the end.”[**]

What does it look like?

            As we are using Daniel as our model and example, the answer is, “Christlike character looks like Daniel.”  What we have learn these past few weeks is that Daniel was a man of faith in God.  Evan Gregory said that, “I trust God has a plan for my life…”  Daniel was a man of private worship.  Pastor Wes taught you about private worship as a choice that one person makes which pleases God.  Daniel was a man with an attitude of thankfulness. Daniel had grit, “perseverance and passion for long-term goals.” Daniel and his friends had courage to simply stand.

            We can add to these things that the Spirit of God was visible through him.  Daniel 5:14, “I have heard of you that the spirit of the gods is in you.  And that light and understanding and excellent wisdom are found in you.”  We can add to these things that Daniel lived blamelessly.  Daniel, 6:21,22, “Then Daniel said to the king, O king, live forever! My God sent his angel and shut the lions’ mouths, and they have not harmed me, because I was found blameless before him; and also before you, O king, I have done no harm.”  We can add that Daniel turned his face to the Lord.  Daniel 9:3, 4a, “Then I turned my face to the Lord God, seeking him by prayer and praise for mercy with fasting and sackcloth and ashes.  I prayed to the Lord my God and made confession,…”  You may be thinking, “Pastor, living up to the standard of a Biblical character may be unrealistic.”

What does it really look like?

            It looks like Shannan Martin.  Shannan writes a blog and writes books and is active on Instagram.  She lives on the near north side of Goshen.  She lives in a small house, maybe even too small for the number of kids and friends that are constant companions.  She attends a church in Goshen that our Bishop almost closed down a few years ago because it struggled so badly to maintain a congregation next to the highway and to the railroad tracks.  If there is anyone whom I have read or heard about in the last several years that knows something about holiness, something about having a Christlike character it is Shannan.  I think that she would deny what I just said.  Hear for yourself:  

          God rescued me from the life I always wanted. He plucked my family up from our dream farmhouse, stripped us of our financial stability and personal esteem, and shattered our obsessions with security, safety, and common sense. Without warning he yanked the rungs from the ladder we were busy climbing, and we fell. Down at his feet, unburdened of the things we’d held so tightly in our desperate quest for freedom, we found the life we were made for. The answer wasn’t in our shipshape self-sufficiency or see-what-I-can-do efforts. It wasn’t in the muscle and drive it takes to get ourselves to the top. Rather, it was in the weightless free fall to the bottom, where he handed us his very best gifts—an income on life support, a zip code on the wrong side of the tracks, a new son with a criminal record, and friends hungry for food, Jesus, and nicotine. We had no choice but to trust God to help us stick the landing. The freedom was in the falling.[††]

            Living holy, living with Christlike character, means that you and I are responding to an invitation.  Shannan writes, 

“He invites us also into his curious existence and offers to lighten our load so we can finally touch freedom. We’ll know it when we see it. Our hearts were created to track it down. He points us toward home, and though we may know little else, we know it’s where we belong.”[‡‡]

            Responding to an invitation of God to live with Christlike character may feel like being invited to jump off a cliff.  

“Get a good look at the cliff in front of you, the one you find yourself inching away from, the one you try to deny. Step close enough to peek over the edge and see just how far the fall might be. With any measure of luck, you might begin to see the beauty of the fall.”[§§]

            Responding to an invitation of God to live with Christlike character may be cooperating with God in God’s plan for your life.  

“We get to collaborate with greatness. We’re offered the freedom of seeing the way God is impossibly smitten with us. But first, we’ve got to be willing to fall. We identify with the beggar and find more of him. We discover our kinship with the criminal, the forgotten, the piercingly ordinary, and he is there.”[***]

            Cooperating with God in God’s plan for our lives does not mean that we will be perfect by the world’s standard of “perfect.”  

“The pulse of our humanity means we’ll never get it right, and we weren’t meant to. God’s love for us is a wheel that keeps turning, a cycle of capture and release. He gives and takes; we receive and pass it on.”[†††]

            Cooperating with God in God’s plan for our lives does mean we will get more than we ever think we gave up.  

“We are so much better together here, in this long-strung tension between what we think we deserve and the wild grace we’ve been given. This is who God is. This is how he loves us.”[‡‡‡]

            Holiness, living with a Christlike character, is about what we do and don’t do as it is about living as one who experiences the unconditional love of God.  The degree to which we allow our self to experience this love, is the degree to which we become like Christ. 

Holiness

Sonicflood

Holiness, holiness is what I long for

Holiness is what I need

Holiness, holiness is what You

want from me

So, take my heart and form it

Take my mind and transform it

Take my will and conform it

To Yours, to Yours, oh, Lord.  Amen.

---

[*]Brennan Manning, The Ragamuffin Gospel: Good News for the Bedraggled, Beat-Up and Burnt Out (Colorado Springs: Multnomah Books, 2015), 109.

[†]Lotz, Anne Graham. The Daniel Key (p. 151). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.

[‡]Lotz, Anne Graham. The Daniel Key (p. 157). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.

[§]E. Stanley Jones, “The Christ of the Indian Road,” p. 161/162.

[**]Ibid.

[††]Martin, Shannan. Falling Free (p. xxi). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.

[‡‡]Martin, Shannan. Falling Free (p. xiv). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.

[§§]Martin, Shannan. Falling Free (p. 210). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.

[***]Ibid.

[†††]Ibid.

[‡‡‡]Ibid.

2019-08-18 Courage Opens Doors

Courage Opens Doors

“For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord.” 

2 TIMOTHY 1:7–8

            Think - the door is always open, never closed, to the choices we may make.  Success is making life choices that please God.  You can choose courage.  Courage pleases God.  Today I would like you to think with me about courage.  Today I will use the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, Daniel’s three friends held in captivity along with him.   Before getting to their story, I would like to set things by defining some aspects of courage. 

            Courage may be gained by experiencing the presence of the Lord.  When Jesus walked on the water, he scares the daylight out of the disciples and calls to them.  Matthew 14:27b,  “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”

            Peter and John were placed on trial in a religious court in Jerusalem.  After declaring the good news of Jesus, the judges fell silent.  The book of Acts records it this way.  Acts 4:13, “When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.”  

            Paul was placed on trial in Jerusalem before a religious court.  After a raucous day before the judges, he lingered that night in the barracks of the soldiers. During the night, we are told that the Lord came to Paul to elevate his courage.  Acts 23:11, “The following night the Lord stood near Paul and said, “Take courage! As you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome.””

            Courage may be gained by experiencing the presence of the Lord.  

            Courage is doing what you’ve got to do when you have fear. 

            When artist Damon Davis went to join the protests in Ferguson, Missouri, after police killed Michael Brown in 2014, he found not only anger but also a sense of love for self and community. His documentary "Whose Streets?" tells the story of the protests from the perspective of the activists who showed up to challenge those who use power to spread fear and hate.  He says from the Ted stage, “So, I'm afraid. Right now, on this stage, I feel fear. In my life, I ain't met many people that will readily admit when they are afraid. And I think that's because deep down, they know how easy it spreads. See, fear is like a disease. When it moves, it moves like wildfire. But what happens when, even in the face of that fear, you do what you've got to do? That's called courage. And just like fear, courage is contagious.”

            Courage may be gained by experiencing the presence of the Lord.  Courage is doing what you’ve got to do when you have fear.  

            Courage is telling the story of who you are with your whole heart. 

            Brené Brown[*]studied people she calls whole-hearted people. Here is what she found out about them.  “What they had in common was a sense of courage. And I want to separate courage and bravery for you for a minute. Courage, the original definition of courage, when it first came into the English language -- it's from the Latin word "cor," meaning "heart" -- and the original definition was to tell the story of who you are with your whole heart…”

            Courage may be gained by experiencing the presence of the Lord.  Courage is doing what you’ve got to do when you have fear.  Courage is telling the story of who you are with your whole heart. 

            Opposite courage is shame.

            Paul units two opposing ideas.  Fear is not the opposite of courage.  For Paul, shame is the opposite of courage.  Philippians 1:20, “I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death.”  And again, in 2 Timothy, “For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord.”

            Courage may be gained by experiencing the presence of the Lord.  Courage is doing what you’ve got to do when you have fear.  Courage is telling the story of who you are with your whole heart.  Opposite courage is shame.

            Standing is a simple thing.  When we are healthy and whole, to stand takes little to no effort of mind and body.  We stand without care or thought.  Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego stood.    They simply stood in a crowd.  They stood in a crowd when all were commanded to bow in worship to Nebuchadnezzar and his gods.  They stood in a crowd when all were commanded to bow in worship to Nebuchadnezzar under the penalty of death by fire.  Their courage let them be seen.  Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego simply stood.  All others bowed.  Were they afraid? Perhaps.  Did they want to live? Perhaps.  Did they run from their testimony?  No.  Did they use angry words?  No.  Did they threaten or lash out in anger?  No.  Did they bargain with God for their lives? No.  They simply stood in testimony to their faith in God. They stood without shame in their faith in God.  They stood with courage.  

            How many of us have the courage of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego to simply stand in testimony to our faith in God?   They had the courage of their faith because God was with them.  The presence of the Lord manifested for others to see when they walked in the flames of the fire.  They had courage doing what they had to do when fear may have stopped them.  They had courage to testify to the story of who they were with their whole heart.  They had no shame before Nebuchadnezzar.  They did not even ask God to save them.  Hear their words,  “King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”  In total vulnerability, they simply stood for God.  

            When you testify about our Lord, you are vulnerable. You shake off shame because you share your story with a whole heart.  It is not because you will not be afraid.  You overcome fear as you share your story with a whole heart.  For the Lord is with you and will give you courage to stand. 

            I would like to share with you the story of one who stands for God and faces the punishment that comes.  Met Pastor John Cao.  He has been held for 894 days.  He was arrested March 2017 in China.  

            On March 5, 2017, police arrested Cao San-Qiang (John Cao), a Chinese pastor known for his work among Myanmar’s poor. Authorities charged Pastor Cao with “organizing illegal crossings of national borders” and, one year later, sentenced him to seven years in prison.

            Pastor Cao, 58, is married to an American citizen and is a long-time resident of North Carolina. The pastor, who is currently being held in the Menglian Detention Center, had been crossing the border between China and Myanmar for three years without incident and with the knowledge of Chinese officials. In the Wa State of northern Myanmar, Pastor Cao helped build 16 schools that serve 2,000 impoverished children. He also established educational projects to help alleviate poverty among local minority groups. 

            Experts believe his arrest and sentencing are related to the ruling Communist Party’s attempts to control the house church movement.

            Pastor Cao became a believer in his 20s. After he married an American citizen, attended seminary and settled in the U.S., he felt led to return as a missionary to his home country of China. He worked for many years establishing schools in China before turning his attention to neighboring Myanmar in 2014. According to his son, his work in Myanmar was much more humanitarian than his previous work with the house churches in China.

            Pray for the pastor’s wife, Jamie Powell, and their sons, Benjamin and Amos.

            Your vulnerability that comes with courage may make you beautiful.   You have the courage and capacity to be the first to say, "I love you"... the courage and capacity to do something where there are no guarantees ... the courage and capacity to breathe through waiting for the doctor to call after your mammogram. Have the courage and capacity to invest in a relationship that may or may not work out. Reframing Brene Brown: 

    Courage let’s ourselves be seen, deeply seen,...

    Courage lets us love with our whole hearts, even though there's no guarantee – 

    Courage let us practice gratitude and joy in those moments of terror, when we're wondering, "Can I love you this much? Can I believe in this this passionately? Can I be this fierce about this?" 

    Courage lets us stop and, instead of catastrophizing what might happen, to say, "I'm just so grateful, because to feel this vulnerable means I'm alive." 

    Courage lets us say, "I'm enough" ... 

     When we have courage, then we stop screaming and start listening, we're kinder and gentler to the people around us, and we're kinder and gentler to ourselves. 

---

[*]Brené Brown studies human connection -- our ability to empathize, belong, love. In a poignant, funny talk, she shares a deep insight from her research, one that sent her on a personal quest to know herself as well as to understand humanity. A talk to share. TEDxHouston | June 2010

2019-08-11 "Perseverance Opens Doors"

Perseverance Opens Doors

            “Do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.” Hebrews 10:35–36

            Think - the door is always open, never closed, to the choices we may make.  Success is making life choices that please God.  You can choose to persevere.  Perseverance pleases God.

            A dictionary definition of perseverance may sound like this to persist in anything undertaken; maintain a purpose in spite of difficulty, obstacles, or discouragement; continue steadfastly.  According to Angela Duckworh, grit is the secret sauce that drives success.  Grit is more important than both talent and intellect.  Angela Duckworth[*], based on her studies, defines grit as “perseverance and passion for long-term goals.”  

            Daniel was a gritty man. 

            Daniel’s life story extends more than eighty years. It all starts with Jerusalem being taken by Nebuchadnezzar.  Daniel and his three friends are transported to Babylon as slaves and given to the eunuchs for training.  Daniel and his friends complete their three years of training. Daniel rises in government when he interprets a dream for Nebuchadnezzar.  Jerusalem and the temple are destroyed by the Babylonians.  Daniel’s vision of four beasts. (Dan. 7) Daniel serves his second king, the son of Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar (Dan. 5).  Daniel serves a third king when Cyrus, king of Persia, conquers Babylon. Daniel serves a fourth king, Darius the Mede assumes power in Babylon. Daniel reads Jeremiah and prays and fasts for the Jewish nation. (Dan. 9) About 50,000 Jews return to Jerusalem, led by Zerubbabel and Joshua the high priest.  Daniel (about age 83) has his prophetic vision about the end times (10:1).  The temple is completed and dedicated.

            Can you imagine watching the devastation of your homeland?  Living through the reign of four kings whose transition was sometimes violent?  Then, being alive when some of his people are released to return to their homeland? Daniel had perseverance and passion for long-term goals.  Daniel was gritty.  Daniel had to have at least two things in his life to persevere through his trials. These two things, among others, may help you persevere.  You need motivation given by others and motivation that wells up inside by giving pleasure to your soul.  

            Motivation from others may come from odd places.  Remember, Daniel’s friends were in a furnace.  

            Ellen McCarthy wrote about “The Quitters Club.” On a drizzly Saturday afternoon four years ago (early 2015), seven people gathered around a high-top table at Busboys and Poets, a restaurant in Washington D.C. They were united by a single cause: to chuck it all. It was the inaugural meeting of The Quitter Club. Tagline: “Let’s give up on our dreams… together!”

            The founder of the club, Justin Cannon, had quit all sorts of things – filmmaking, music, graphic design, college, fashion. He’d pursue a dream, self-doubt would kick in, and then he’d quit, always feeling like a failure. At a filmmakers’ gathering in February 2015, Cannon expressed his growing exasperation. “I was like, ‘We should have a group where people want to give up on their dreams.’ I was making a joke,” he recalls. “But somebody said, ‘You know, that’s a really good idea.’”

            A few days later, he took action. He signed up for a Meetup organizer account online and posted the notice for his new group. He thought he might be forming a club of one, but within 48 hours, 35 people signed up. Out of those 35, seven showed up at the first meeting.

            One was ready to cast aside her long-held ambition to become an actress. Same deal for a would-be writer. Another was ready to quit Washington D.C. altogether.

            The hodgepodge group of strangers were drawn together by the same invite that read: “Most of us have something special we’d like to do with our lives. Often this Holy Grail does us more harm than good; costing valuable time, resources and relationships … At the Quitters’ Club… we can help each other stomp out the brush fires set in our hearts and get on with our lives.”

            Strange thing was as they gathered to talk about quitting, they ended up encouraging each other to keep on going.[†]

            The people in the group rebuilt each other’s tenacity.  We know that Daniel was not alone in his exile.  Coming together fortifies perseverance. 

            The pleasure we feel inside may motivate our perseverance and give us grit.  Hebrews says, “You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.”  The scale isn’t just for the big things.  I think the scale may also be very small.  Think of this as practicing joy to develop perseverance. 

            Christiopher Bergland[‡]from The Athlete’s Way gives simple advice on how to teach yourself to persevere by creating pleasure in yourself. Here are some simple ways he writes about how to experience pleasure as you develop perseverance and work toward your goals. 

            …Every time you complete a task in your daily life visualize that you have just self-administered a hit of 'feel good' juice and that habit will be reinforced.

            Remember, Henry Ford said, "There is joy in work. There is no happiness except in the realization that we have accomplished something."

            … The next time you feel unmotivated to exercise or work harder towards a goal remember the "Pleasure Principle" and the equation that SWEAT = BLISS.  Laziness and lack of follow through is seductive because it's easy and requires no effort. But, over time the habit of complacency leaves you depleted and you become dissatisfied and depressed.  Reinforcing this, Jean Wiecha believes that regular physical activity is the most effective way to begin to hardwire the habit of perseverance. Anytime you lace up your sneakers and start moving your body and achieve a goal you are reinforcing a mindset of perseverance that bleeds into all aspects of your life.[§]

            Low levels of pleasure in what you do makes you apathetic. If you do not accomplish something every day your reserves will diminish. Humans are designed to work hard and to be rewarded for their efforts biologically. Being uninspired and lacking self-motivation is a downward spiral that can snowball out of control. It's so easy to become bitter, cynical and hopeless when your reserves are low.  But you have the power to turn this around by consciously looking at everything you achieve--from flossing your teeth, to taking out the trash--as a way to build your reserves. Look at everything you do in the day as a chance to create a sense of reward and deliver a rush of satisfaction.

            …The key to overcoming large obstacles or 'mountains' is to break them into doable doses and tackle them one 'mole-hill' at a time.  Turn a "Macro-Goal" into very tangible "Micro-Goals", each of which gives you a small hit of joy. 

            For example: Something as simple as putting fresh linens on your bed can be a goldmine.  Each step in the process: from pulling all four corners of a fitted sheet around the mattress; to putting the pillows back in their cases; to then tucking in the sheets to create "hospital corners" are all chances to give yourself mini-hits of reward. When you have the bed completely made you get a sense of accomplishment. You can break every task you face in daily life into mini-achievements that each release a hit of joy. 

            One of the most important reasons to define an action as a 'goal' is that it needs to be viewed as something with a beginning, middle and end. When you accomplish the goal you will get a sense of contentment and satisfaction that always accompanies the act of persevering and getting the job done.

            Be your own cheering squad.  Think how we celebrate every attempt a crawling baby makes to pulling themselves up to walk, we cheer and clap.  Cheer and clap for yourself.  Learn to say, “Yes, I did it!”

            What can we learn from Daniel for successful living? How can we learn to choose a life that is pleasing to God?  We may choose faith; we may choose personal worship; we may choose the attitude of Christ. And, we may choose to persevere by holding close to those on journey home with us and by allowing ourselves to experience joy and the reward of God right now.  

Prayer:  I pray to the Lord my God.  Maker of Heaven and Earth.  You are the one that flung the stars in the skies; you set the heavens in their place and continue your creation through the every expanding universe.  You are mindful of us, weak and lowly people; yet, you come to us.  You come to each of us in our moment of need.  You can take our anger and handle our hate.  You bring a moment of joy in the smallest of tasks; that when added together, a hundred million small moments of success pill up until we are in your perfect will.  Let us find the moments.  Let us persevere.  Amen. 

---

[*]Angela Duckworth is the Founder and CEO of Character Lab, a nonprofit whose mission is to advance the science and practice of character development. She is also the Christopher H. Browne Distinguished Professor of Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, faculty co-director of the Penn-Wharton Behavior Change For Good Initiative, and faculty co-director of Wharton People Analytics.  A 2013 MacArthur Fellow, Angela has advised the White House, the World Bank, NBA and NFL teams, and Fortune 500 CEOs.

[†]Ellen McCarthy, “The Quitters Club: Let's Give Up on Our Dreams Together,” The Washington Post, 3-25-15.

[‡]Christopher Bergland, The Athlete's Way, The Neuroscience of Perseverance, Dopamine Reinforces the Habit of Perseverance, Posted Dec 26, 2011

[§]Associate Professor of Exercise and Health Sciences at U Mass Boston named Jean Wiecha, who is also the Director of the GoKids program there. Dr. Wiecha has been conducting community-based research on child health for 20 years.

2019-08-04 “Attitude Opens Doors"

Attitude Opens Doors

            “Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.” PHILIPPIANS 2:5

            

            Think - the door is always open, never closed.  In the last two weeks you heard Pastor Wes say, as he started our end of summer sermon series,  “Success is a life that pleases God.  Freely making choices that please God.”  And Pastor Wes said that, “The door is always open to make choices that are pleasing to God…The way forward is open to all possibilities.  Our choices impact others and ourselves.  We may not see the result of today’s choice until later.”  

            In the first week, Pastor Wes and Evan Gregory shared about how faith leads to a successful life of pleasing God.  Evan said that, “I trust God has a plan for my life… Do what I have been taught. [because]  I have a place with God.”  Pastor Wes taught you, “Whether I am visibly delivered or not, my belief in the love of God does not change… Faith accepts what you can’t see and moves on… Your faith opens you up to show you what to do.”  Pastor Wes challenged you with the question, “Are you aware of a decision you have made now because of your faith in Jesus Christ?”

            Last week, Pastor Wes again reminded you that, “Success is a life that pleases God.  Freely making choices that please God.”  And that, “The door is always open to make choices that are pleasing to God…The way forward is open to all possibilities.  Our choices impact others and ourselves.  We may not see the result of today’s choice until later.”  He taught you about private worship as a choice that one person makes which pleases God.  He taught you about adoration, confession, thanksgiving and supplication known as the ACTS prayer.  He also taught you about a quicker and more immediate version supplication, confession, adoration and thanksgiving known as the SCAT prayer.  

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            In this series, we think of Daniel’s life as a successful life.  What we learn from the Book of Daniel is that the man, Daniel, was a man of faith and a man of personal worship through prayer.  Daniel under the worst of circumstances made choices pleasing to God. An additional attribute of Daniel’s character that opened doors of faith was his attitude.  Anne Graham Lotz writes, “Our attitude today can determine our greatness . . . or smallness . . . tomorrow.” (Lotz, Anne Graham. The Daniel Key (p. 53). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.) 

            We get a hint of Daniel’s attitude in the face of adversity in chapter 6 of the Book of Daniel.  This is the chapter that holds the story of Daniel in the lions’ den. 

Lotz writes that the attitude Daniel continually displayed was the attitude of thankfulness.  She says, “The key to thankfulness is not to view God through the lens of our circumstances, but to view our circumstances through the lens of God’s love and sovereign purpose. (Lotz, Anne Graham. The Daniel Key (p. 53). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.)  Chapter six starts with these words setting up the conflict between Daniel and the other rulers and governors of Mede and Persia.  “It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom one hundred and twenty satraps, stationed throughout the whole kingdom, and over them three presidents, including Daniel; to these the satraps gave account, so that the king might suffer no loss.”  You may know how the story progresses.  It is a story of jealously and of deception.  

            The other officials were highly jealous of Daniel’s standing with Darius the emperor.  They could not find any flaw in Daniel’s performance as an administrator or as a leader.  So, they decided to go after his faith.  Appealing to Darius’ ego, they decided to propose a law that forbad anyone to pray to anyone other than Darius for thirty days.  They were able to get Darius to sign the law into immediate enforcement with a clause that prohibited the law from being revoked for any purpose or cause. Darius signed the law without understanding the unintended consequence for Daniel.  Although Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he continued to go to his house, which had windows in its upper room open towards Jerusalem, and to get down on his knees three times a day to pray,  “giving thanks to God.”

            Those conspiring against Daniel, reported Daniel’s law breaking prayers to Darius.  Who, though grieved by the fact that his most trusted advisor could not be saved from the enforcement of the law, order Daniel to be placed in the lions’ den.  To Darius’ credit, Darius fasted and prayed for Daniel all night long.  In the morning he runs to the den to know of Daniel’s fate.  Daniel, by God’s grace, is alive!  The story ends poorly for those who conspired against Daniel and deceived Darius. Darius sings a prayer of thankfulness to God:

For he is the living God,

   enduring for ever.

His kingdom shall never be destroyed,

   and his dominion has no end. 

He delivers and rescues,

   he works signs and wonders in heaven and on earth;

for he has saved Daniel

   from the power of the lions.’

            I would like for you to test the level of your gratitude this morning.  I have six questions for you from The Gratitude Questionnaire-Six Item Form (GQ-6) developed by University of Pennsylvania professors, Michael E. McCullough, Ph.D., Robert A. Emmons, Ph.D., Jo-Ann Tsang, Ph.D.  Using a scale as a guide, think about a number indicating how much you agree with each statement.  Here’s the scale:  

1 = strongly disagree 

2 = disagree

3 = slightly disagree 

4 = neutral 

5 = slightly agree

6 = agree

7 = strongly agree

            Ready?  I hope that these questions help you to get a handle on your level of thankfulness.  Here are the six questions:  

____1. I have so much in life to be thankful for. 

____2. If I had to list everything that I felt grateful for, it would be a very long list. 

____3. When I look at the world, I don’t see much to be grateful for.* 

____4. I am grateful to a wide variety of people. 

____5. As I get older I find myself more able to appreciate the people, events, and situations that have been part of my life history. 

____6. Long amounts of time can go by before I feel grateful to something or someone.* 

* Items 3 and 6 are reverse-scored. 

[https://ppc.sas.upenn.edu/resources/questionnaires-researchers/gratitude-questionnaire]

            

            Do you have a sense how much gratitude you have in your spirit today?  Do you have enough gratitude in your heart to tell God that you are thankful for your house, your cloths, your food, your retirement fund?  Do you have enough gratitude in your heart to tell God that you are thankful for the people in your life whom you love?  Who love you?  Who don’t like you?  Those whom you don’t love?  Do you have enough gratitude in your heart to tell God that you are thankful for your circumstance?  Your health? Your lack of health?  The challenges with which you live?  Like Daniel can you kneel down today and thank God for your persecutors, those who want to do you harm?  Do you have enough gratitude in your life that someone around you will lift up their voice like Darius to give God praise and thanksgiving for you?

            “If Daniel had given in to self-pity, anger, resentment, bitterness, unforgiveness, or a vengeful spirit with a “why me?” attitude toward God, I doubt we would ever have heard of him. Instead, three times a day, every day, Daniel chose to have an attitude of thanksgiving. 

            “What is your attitude? Especially when you’re in “captivity”—bound in some way that restricts what you can do or where you can go or who you can be or what you can have? When God has allowed you to be in some sort of exile—cut off from friends, family, that which is familiar; when He has denied you personal wealth, health, prosperity, happiness—what is your attitude?” (Lotz, Anne Graham. The Daniel Key (p. 57). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.)

            May you have today enough gratitude in your heart that you will not be consumed by lions in the den, that you like Daniel will walk away in the morning light. 



Prayer

            Eternal Fountainhead of All Blessings, I worship You as a good, good Father. When You allow bad things to happen to me—Your child, whom You love— I know you are able to bring good for Your glory. Your ways are not my ways. Your thoughts are higher than mine. The scope of Your love is measureless. I trust You. I lay my life down before You. Thank You for never being neglectful or whimsical, but always attentive and intentional. Thank You for showing me that I can be confident that all things—with absolutely no exceptions—will work together for my ultimate good and Your glory. When I’m tempted to complain, remind me that before You went to the Cross, You took the cup that represented Your death—Your blood that would be poured out—and You gave thanks! Help me to see Your glory in the darkness of pain, Your blessings in the disappointments of life. For the glory of Your great name, Amen. (Lotz, Anne Graham. The Daniel Key (p. 57). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.)