Worship and Relationships

Last week Anna and I both traveled to Lafayette, Indiana for the Biblical Counseling Training Conference at Faith Baptist Church/Faith Ministries. We had a great time with challenging sessions all week long.
One of the best sessions I heard was by Paul Tripp on Worship and Marital Unity. He used an illustration that was life-changing for me. I've shared it with several people already. The picture was of a triangle with the word WORSHIP in the center. The three points were labeled God as Creator (top), God as Sovereign (left) and God as Savior (right). I'll describe each.

In our relationships, we need to realize that God is creator of the other person. Often we get frustrated with the way God has "hardwired" them (for example, a husband's lack of mechanical ability) and wish we could "re-create" them. We must recognize God as creator and worship Him for the way He has made them.

God is also sovereign over each of our life stories. We can trust God's sovereignty in "writing" each story as He chooses. To be critical of a person's culture, family background, or life experiences is to fail to worship God as sovereign.

God has also provided a Savior in Jesus Christ. We, who have accepted by faith His gift of grace, have begun an ongoing process of sanctification and growth in grace. In our relationships, we must recognize that God is conforming each of us to the image of His Son. This process will not be completed until we see Him face to face. We can worship God for His work; and we can participate with Him in His work in others.

These three truths leave little room for a negative and critical heart. There is only place for hope in God and worship of God. I think this is incredibly encouraging as we participate in the lives of flawed individuals and recognize in ourselves a propensity to choose our own way. Relationships are a "mess worth making". They drive us to worship.

God as Creator
Psalm 100:3 "Know that the LORD Himself is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture."

God as Sovereign
Acts 17:26 "and He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation,"

God as Savior
Titus 2:11-15 "For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus, who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds."

What a God

I read today that in 1556, an earthquake in the Chinese province of Shensi killed 830,000 people.

I also saw a presentation recently on the continuing effects of Chernobyl. It truly is a hell on Earth. One in three pregnancies is malformed. Cancer rates have skyrocketed. So many, many people are suffering.

These things are really quite hard for me to comprehend. And yet, our God knew and knows every detail of those people's lives. He knows me well enough to answer the most detailed prayer request. I am reminded today at how immense and different from me God really is. I fear Him, and yet I have an intimate and personal trusting relationship with Him.

We Can Praise Him

As I was standing by my dryer today looking at three stained shirts, that I once again let sit too long on the floor downstairs, I thought again of how needy we are. Only when we are totally insignificant and inadequate is when we begin to call on God. But the good news is we can call on God. When we are messing up, we can still praise Him. David writes in Psalms 43:5 "Why are you in despair, O my soul?And why are you disturbed within me? Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him, The help of my countenance and my God."

A verse in Lamentations stuck out to me this week.

"I well remember them (my affliction), and my soul is downcast within me. Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, "The LORD is my portion; therefore I will wait for him." The LORD is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD.

Thank you God making me smaller so you can be bigger. Thank you for allowing me to mess up. When I try my hardest, I will fail. But God will never fail me.

God is good...all the time

We received the following e-mail today from our friends, Andy and Liz Smith. I cried when I read it because we, too, lost our first baby. This is so very hard.

We thank you for your faithfulness in praying for us in the past. We have taken a moment to write to you today asking especially for your prayers right now. As many of you know, Elizabeth and I were expecting our first child in January. As we very anxiously awaited our baby's arrival next winter, God saw fit to bring us our son a little earlier than expected. On Tuesday, August 28, Collin Curtis Smith was born, exactly when he was 21 weeks old. That is, of course, too early for little Collin to live on his own. He was born with a strong, beating heart, and we got to enjoy life with him for a little while. We would appreciate your prayers as we grieve the loss of our son. We have found comfort in God's Word: Psalm 34:15,17-19; Isaiah 46:4b; Psalm 139:13-16. As we attend Collin's graveside service this Saturday afternoon, September 1st, we would appreciate your prayers.
Thank you for your prayers,
Andy and Elizabeth Smith

On a personal note, it's been six years since we lost our baby. I struggled so much at the time with believing that God is good. I loved Psalm 84:11 which says "...no good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly." I was seeking to walk uprightly. Why was God withholding this good thing from me? The problem must, then, lie in God's and my own definition of what is good. Though death and grief are the results of sin and help us to understand the horrible nature of sin, this grief was still good. How could that possibly be? I found the answer in Psalm 73:28 "...it is good for me to draw near to God." God values different thing than I value. God values my Christlikeness, not my comfort. God values my increased ministry opportunities, not my personal pleasure. God values more faith, more love, more tenderness, more patience, more dependence. These are the truly good things.