Water and Fire

I won't be scared of the fire or scared of the water
You're the great overcomer, You're living in me
You are the man in the fire, You walked on the water
You're the great overcomer, Emmanuel!

As we sang this song in my church last Sunday, I was reminded of one of my favorite Scriptures to meditate on during cancer treatment. But my take on it is a little different from the more traditional interpretation... or is it?

In the Bible, "water" typically is used for washing and cleansing. This would be like washing your hands or your feet, washing your clothes, washing food to prepare it, that sort of thing. The waters of the sea were a great food source via fishing. But in the ancient world, the sea also could be a terrifying, dangerous place. There was a time when Jesus' disciples were caught in a storm on the sea that was so bad that they feared for their lives... but then Jesus came to them actually walking ON the water they were so afraid of, and then He exercised authority over it and stopped the storm (Mark 6:45-52).

"Fire", on the other hand, often represents purification - melting down metals to remove impurities, for example, and making animal sacrifices to purify the people of their sins. In one notable story, three faithful Israelites were thrown into a fire to execute them, and God saved them from it - they came out perfectly unharmed (Daniel 3:8-30).

These were likely some of the kinds of thoughts that would have occurred to an ancient reader of this passage from Isaiah 43:1-3:

But now thus says the LORD,
he who created you, O Jacob,
   he who formed you, O Israel:
“Fear not, for I have redeemed you;
   I have called you by name, you are mine.
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
   and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you;
when you walk through fire you shall not be burned,
   and the flame shall not consume you.
For I am the LORD your God,
   the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.

Let me take a little detour here. When my wife Cat was undergoing cancer treatment, her experience was this: first, they did chemotherapy treatments on her to reduce the size of the cancer tumor. Basically, chemotherapy involves sitting in a comfy chair for hours at a time while they pump various medicines into you through an IV. Once they decided that the many chemo treatments had had the effect they wanted, they sent her in for radiation treatments. In those they send radiation into your body in such a way that it basically burns up the cancer cells. They are very accurate with radiation treatments these days, but just like with sun radiation at the beach, you can sometimes get burns even on your skin. I understand that chemo and then radiation is a common way to treat many cancers. (I don't know yet if I will ever undergo radiation treatments - stay tuned!)

So when I read that passage and it says "When you pass through the waters, I will be with you," it reminds me of the hours of liquid medicine during chemotherapy. And when I read "when you walk through fire you shall not be burned," I'm reminded of the burning effects of radiation therapy. I choose to take this prophecy, in my own life, as a promise that whatever of those therapies I happen to be doing at the time, God is with me, protecting me from any harm that they could inadvertently do!

I won't be scared of the fire or scared of the water
You're the great overcomer, You're living in me
You are the man in the fire, You walked on the water
You're the great overcomer, Emmanuel!

 

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For the full story of my cancer journey, start here - or just explore all of the posts I've tagged "cancer".

Worthy

This week at my church the worship songs were all about how Jesus is worthy of our praise. Whenever I hear a song like that, my mind immediately thinks, sure, God is worthy of praise, but what makes MY praise desirable to a holy God? In Isaiah it says that our sin makes even our righteousness like "filthy rags". What does God want with my filthy rags praise and worship?

 

Years ago the church I was attending had a worship choir. Every Sunday we were up there on the stage, singing along with the worship team. Some Sundays we would perform a choir piece, but regardless, every Sunday we were up there during the worship part. One Sunday a young lady was asking about being in the choir, and I encouraged her to show up for rehearsal and see if she liked it. "Oh, I don't know. I don't think I'm good enough," she told me. "It's okay," I said, "we have people with all skill levels in our choir. You don't have to be an expert singer to participate." "No, you don't understand," she told me. "I don't think I'm good enough."

Have you ever played a game with a very small child? Every kid is different, and things get different as they get older, but usually when I play a game with a really little kid, I want them to win. I want them to succeed. I don't want to beat them! I want them to experience victory! So what do I do? I throw the match. I play like a complete moron. Or I take the deck of cards and stack them so the kid always gets the good cards. Whatever it is, though, I try to give the child a victory. Why? Because I can, and I want them to know that they are a winner. I want to give them success! Did they earn it? Well, they probably played the best they could, but in the end, they couldn't beat an adult. They couldn't win without my help!

This week listening to these songs I remembered and internalized something I already knew in my mind - that our praise and our worship are worthy of God because they are placed there by God in the first place! Our personal goodness is irrelevant. It was a game we couldn't win. We had less of a chance than a toddler winning a chess match against a grand master. The deck wasn't just stacked against us - we didn't even get any cards! There was no way we could be worthy enough to reach to God. There is no way we could ever be "good enough." We were destined to fail.

Then Jesus entered the picture.

Jesus was the only person who was unstained by sin. He was the only one who could ever win the chess match, who could ever beat the house, who could ever hope to get the ball into the basket. Jesus lived a life of righteousness when none of us ever could, and then by dying on the cross, Jesus made that righteousness available to us. He won the Super Bowl, but we get to stand on the stage and receive the trophy! We weren't worthy of anything good - but Jesus made us worthy!

Our praise is worthy of a holy God because it comes from the righteousness placed in us by Him. He's stacked the deck for us! He's worthy of our praise, and we can't help it - our praise is worthy to be offered! Are you still asking yourself "But am I good enough?" Well, the answer is, NO, you're not. Or at least you weren't. But the moment you received Jesus, asked Him to be Lord of your life, His worthiness became yours. So give Him your praise!

Song Thoughts: "Build My Life"

Worthy of every song we could ever sing
Worthy of all the praise we could ever bring
Worthy of every breath we could ever breathe
We live for You

...

Holy, there is no one like You
There is none beside You
Open up my eyes in wonder...

from "Build My Life" as recorded by Housefires

Wait just a sec. Jesus is holy, yes. There is nobody else holy like He is. That includes me. So that means that every song I could ever sing and every breath I could ever breathe are tainted. Everything I do on this plane of existence is just a little bit messed up. Why would God possibly want the messed-up offering I have of imperfect praise from a person who daily has to fight just to keep from committing a new sin, not to mention the number of sins I've committed over the years of my lifetime? That's like saying "You did good work building me this house! You are worthy of payment! Here's ten cents, plus a half-eaten peppermint I found in my pocket! Sorry about the lint." Why would a holy God possibly want to be worthy of the meager, messed up, out of tune and out of whack praise we would be able to offer?

Within ourselves, we cannot offer God anything of high enough value to honor Him. We don't have anything that valuable. That's why we shouldn't live and exist in the context of our own worthiness - we don't have any! Only Jesus is truly worthy. BUT: the amazingly cool and exciting thing about the message of the cross is that when Jesus died, He took all of our unworthiness down with Him. All of the stain, all the guilt before God of every sin we have committed or will commit, when we choose to accept what He has done for us, is paid for and removed from us!

Jesus made us worthy. Because of that, we can offer praise that God accepts as a sweet scent, an offering fit for the only One holy enough to deserve it. With every breath you breathe, live for Him!

Song Thoughts: "Great Are You Lord"

It's Your breath in our lungs, so we pour out our praise, pour out our praise... - "Great Are You Lord"

And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. - Colossians 1:17 ESV

Every time we sing this song and I get to the chorus, and take a deep breath to belt it out, I think, "Jesus, You're putting this air into my lungs. And you're putting this worship in my heart."

You do realize that every time your heart beats, it's because Jesus made it beat, right? Every time you wake up, it's because He gave you another day to wake up in. Every time your muscles make your body move, every time your eyes blink, every time your body turns food into fuel to keep you alive - it's because Jesus did it.

But more than that: the worship He put into your heart actually belongs to Him in the first place. When we say "You are worthy of praise" it doesn't mean the same thing as it does when we, say, make flattering statements about a successful athlete or celebrity or even our family member or child.

The worship actually belongs to Him, and always has.

As worshipers, we are a vessel to deliver back to God something He entrusted us with, something that belongs to Him. Because nobody but Him deserves it. He put the breath in your lungs, He put the worship in your heart, and when you use one to give another back to Him, it's simply completing the circle, bringing you closer to Him.

You give life. You are love. You bring light to the darkness.
You give hope. You restore ev'ry heart that is broken, and great are You Lord!

It's Your breath in our lungs, so we pour out our praise, we pour out our praise!
It's Your breath in our lungs, so we pour out our praise to You only!

And all the earth will shout Your praise. Our hearts will cry, these bones will sing, "Great are You Lord!"

Song Thoughts: "How He Loves"

He is jealous for me...

STOP RIGHT THERE!

Stop singing for a second. Yeah, I do notice that we only finished the first line. That’s because that first line totally wrecks.

Do you remember your first crush? Maybe you were in junior high school, or elementary school, or wherever. I’m talking about the first person your age who totally made your heart go pitter-patter.

Remember how you felt the first time you ever saw that person talking to someone else? Maybe they were even laughing? And it looked to you like your chance with that person was completely gone?

Remember how that felt?

THAT IS HOW GOD.

FEELS.

ABOUT.

YOU.

Close your eyes for a minute and take a deep breath and think about it for a second. I’’ll wait right here until you get back.

…

…

…

OK, done?

Now, go ahead and sing the rest. If you can!

He is jealous for me.
Love’s like a hurricane, and I am a tree bending beneath the weight of His wind and mercy…
When all of a sudden, I am unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory, and I realize just how beautiful you are and how great your affections are for me!

And oh,
How He loves us, oh…
Oh how He loves us!
how He loves us, oh!
We are His portion and He is our prize, drawn to redemption by the grace in his eyes.
If grace is an ocean, we’re all sinking!
So heaven meets earth like an unforeseen kiss, and my heart turns violently inside of my chest…
I don’t have time to maintain these regrets when I think about the way He loves us!

Oh how He loves us!
Oh how He loves us!
Oh how He loves!

I've blogged about this song before! Click here to see.

Song thoughts: "Friend of God"

I am a friend of God!
I am a friend of God!
I am a friend of God! He calls me "friend"!
-lyrics to Friend of God by Michael Gungor & Israel Houghton

When this song was new to most people, a worship leader friend of mine told me something that surprised me. It seemed that she was getting pushback from members of the congregation who didn't like the almost chummy way the phrase "friend of God" feels. Presumably they felt that God was their Lord, their King, their Father... but never just their plain old "friend."

The problem is that the Bible itself says otherwise. The inspiration for the song was James 2:23, which says "...and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God."

"But that's Abraham," you might say. "He's a special case. He's like THE father of faith!" Well, I would disagree with you that Abraham is a special case, but let's talk about a group of people who essentially started the body we now call the Church. Jesus' twelve disciples are the "us" in the Gospels. They were just people who loved Jesus, like us, and Jesus said to them, "No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you." (John 15:15)

Guess what? In those very same Gospels, Jesus revealed to us that same information that qualified His first 12 disciples as "friends." God called Abraham his "friend" and He called His disciples "friends"... and He calls you His "friend" too!

Who am I that You are mindful of me, that You hear me when I call?
Is it true that You are thinking of me, how You love me? It's amazing!

I am a friend of God!
I am a friend of God!
I am a friend of God! He calls me "friend"!

God Almighty, Lord of Glory, You have called me friend!

Song thoughts: "Fierce"

Like a tidal wave crashing over me, rushing in to meet me here,
Your love is fierce!
Like a hurricane that I can't escape, tearing through the atmosphere,
Your love is fierce!
- Jesus Culture

"This phrase, 'Yet once more,' indicates the removal of things that are shaken—that is, things that have been made—in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire."
- Hebrews 12:27–29 ESV

The first time I heard the song Fierce, I instantly thought of friends back home. I'm from Louisiana, where hurricanes and tidal waves aren't things that happen to people "somewhere else." I was living in Tulsa when Katrina hit, but I have family and friends who have been personally effected by Katrina and by other hurricanes over the years. My first thought when I first heard the chorus of this song was not, "That's a beautiful expression of how strong God's love is for us!" My first thought was, "This is a song that will really upset people who have been through an actual hurricane!"

It seems strange to describe the love of God as a destructive force - we usually think of love as something that does good things, not destructive things. But according to the Word, God's very presence does indeed contain destructive power. Which frankly seems a little scary!

The key fact here is this: the thing that is destroyed by God's presence is impurity. Sin. Fortunately for us, because Jesus decoupled us from our sinfulness on the Cross, our sinful actions do not cause us to be destroyed. Any sin in the area when God arrives is destroyed, but His people are not.

If we cannot be destroyed by the nature of God's love, but our sin can be destroyed by it, then that means that anything that tries to stand between us and God cannot stand! There is nothing that can withstand the force of a tsunami or a hurricane, and there is nothing that can withstand the force of God's love. It breaks down every barrier! God's love is on the way in a hurry, and there is no escape! (But why would we want to?)

Before I call, before I ever cry, You answer me from where the thunder hides.
I can't outrun this heart I'm tethered to, when every step, I collide with You!

Like a tidal wave crashing over me, rushing in to meet me here,
Your love is fierce!
Like a hurricane that I can't escape, tearing through the atmosphere,
Your love is fierce!

You cannot fail! The only thing I've found is, through it all, You never let me down.
You don't hold back, relentless in pursuit. At every turn I come face to face with You!

You chase me down!
You seek me out!
How could I be lost when You have called me found?

Song thoughts: "Joy of the Lord"

When I cannot see You with my eyes, let faith arise to You.
When I cannot feel Your hand in mine, let faith arise to You.
God of mercy and love, I will praise You, Lord!
-Rend Collective

"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." - Hebrews 11:10 ESV

I think the word "faith" tends to be misunderstood more often than it is understood. That's probably because in the English language, we use it to mean a bunch of different things. There is your "Faith" which basically means your set of religious beliefs. The phrase "keep the faith" is often used to mean "keep doing what you're doing because it's the right thing to do." And of course, in some circles "faith" is seen as a tool to get things to happen - almost like a currency that is spent to purchase something.

I think Bible faith is something else entirely. Bible "faith" is simply you and me trusting that God is Who He says He is, and that because He has said so in the Word, He will act on our behalf. Faith is not a means to an end, like repeating something over and over in order to memorize it. Faith is a lifestyle of trust toward God - whether God ever does what you think He should do or not. Sometimes God's best looks like a Bad Idea to the person it is happening to... just ask Job, or Abraham, or Moses, or any other Bible character who jumped the gun on God's plan. Faith is trusting God anyway.

So as the song says, sometimes we don't understand what's going on. We think we know a good plan, but for some reason God doesn't seem to be doing things that way. In fact, things may seem bleak to us. There may be tears, there may be anxiety. But faith says, "I don't know what's going on, but I do know that God loves me, and I'm going to praise Him!" It's a choice that we have to make - it doesn't usually just wash over you. But when you make it, it's the right choice! It's the path to joy!

Though tears may fall, my song will rise, my song will rise to You.
Though my heart may fail, my song will rise, my song will rise to You.
While there’s breath in my lungs, I will praise You, Lord!

In the dead of night I’ll lift my eyes, I’ll lift my eyes to You.
When the waters rise, I’ll lift my eyes, I’ll lift my eyes to You.
While there’s hope in this heart, I will praise You, Lord!

The joy of the Lord is my strength!
The joy of the Lord is my strength!
In the darkness I’ll dance, in the shadows I’ll sing!
The joy of the Lord is my strength!

When I cannot see You with my eyes, let faith arise to You.
When I cannot feel Your hand in mine, let faith arise to You.
God of mercy and love, I will praise You, Lord! 

Oh, You shine with glory, Lord of light! I feel alive with You!
In Your presence now I come alive! I am alive with You!
There is strength when I say, "I will praise You, Lord!"

When sorrow comes my way, You are the shield around me;
Always You remain, like courage in the fight.
I hear You call my name!
Jesus, I am coming, walking on the waves, reaching for Your light!

Song thoughts: "Your Love Awakens Me"

I'm writing up a series of short devotionals for the worship team at my church, based on the songs we do during the service, and I thought it would be cool to share them here too. Here's the first one!

“In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” – John 1:4-5 ESV

I love how this song uses the images of death/darkness interchangeably, and life/light interchangeably. In our culture when we think of light, we tend to think of knowledge – which is a totally valid way of looking at it, and when Jesus brings “light” to our lives by saving us, spiritual understanding is certainly a part of it. But to ancient peoples, light was synonymous with life itself. With no sunshine, your crops will die, and eventually so will you. The light that Jesus brings is more than a source of knowing stuff about God… it is a source of life itself!

I also love the way the first verse uses words that relate to being imprisoned, but then in the pre-chorus we realize that the prison we were released from was actually death! How vivid is that idea of being in a cold, dark, deathly prison – but then suddenly God bursts in, kicking down walls and tearing off chains, and leading us into bright sunshine and light!

Did you notice that the first verse and pre-chorus are in past tense – things Jesus has done – and the chorus and second verse are in present tense? God did something for humanity on the Cross, and the effects continue to be felt and to cause things to happen. None of us is perfect – there are things in each of our lives that still haven’t found their way into the light of God’s life. Jesus continues to draw us out, wake us up, bring those parts of us back to life! Everything in creation sings “We’re alive ‘cause You’re alive!”, and we shout it out too!

There were walls between us,
By the cross you came and broke them down – You broke them down!
There were chains around us,
By Your grace we are no longer bound, no longer bound!

You called me out from the grave, You called me into the light!
You called my name and then my heart came alive!

Your love is greater!
Your love is stronger!
Your love awakens, awakens, awakens me!

Feel the darkness shaking!
All the dead are coming back to life, oh, back to life!
Hear the song awaken, 
All creation singing “We’re alive ‘cause You’re alive!”

You called me out from the grave, You called me into the light!
You called my name and then my heart came alive!

Your love is greater!
Your love is stronger!
Your love awakens, awakens, awakens me!

What a love we found!
Death can’t hold us down!
We shout it out, “We’re alive ‘cause You’re alive!”

Your love is greater!
Your love is stronger!
Your love awakens, awakens, awakens me!