HUMPTY-DUMPTY DAYS

“I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation” Psalm 13:5

Have you ever stopped to think about the fact that children’s nursery rhymes are a little bizarre? Take, for instance, the depressing tale of Humpty Dumpty.

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall,
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.
All the king’s horses and all the king’s men,
Couldn’t put Humpty together again.

While I wonder about the wisdom of entertaining little kids with such a grim tale, I have to admit that I am a little confused as to why an egg would ever sit on a wall in the first place! And what exactly would we expect the horses to do about it? So, why are we pinning our hopes on them? A great bumper sticker expresses the convictions of a conspiracy theorist, stating, “Humpty Dumpty was pushed!”

But, as silly as all of that is, we have to admit that there are days when you and I feel a lot like Humpty Dumpty. The broken pieces of life seem hopelessly shattered, and for the life of us we don’t have a clue about how to put them back together again.

So, what do we do when life has us in pieces at the bottom of the wall? Read and embrace the truth of Psalm 13!

David starts the psalm with refreshing honesty—the kind of candor we unfortunately don’t often encounter in church world. In his despair, he complains, “How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever?” (Psalm 13:1). He feels hopeless and, worse yet, abandoned by God. So, in desperation he throws himself on the mercy of God, pleading, “Look on me and answer, O Lord my God. Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death” (v.3). But even as he expresses his hurt and anguish, the tone of David’s prayer changes. In verse 5, David’s attention shifts from his broken life to the solid, unchanging character of God. Of course, intense prayer always does that. When you’re with God, you can’t help but shift your attention from yourself to Him. Seeing God afresh, David’s heart is finding new strength as he affirms, “But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation” (v.5).

The English language can’t possibly do justice to the original word used here. Translated as “unfailing love,” the Hebrew word hesed means the kind of faithful, eternal love for us that is rooted in God’s very nature. It is never based on our circumstances, moods, or actions. It is a love that acts on our behalf in spite of anything, and thankfully it is a love that is backed, as the psalmist says, by the full power of God to save us in the midst of trouble.

David came to realize that if he knew the “who” in his situation, he didn’t need to understand the “why.” In fact, he didn’t even need answers about the “how” of the situation, such as: How was he going to get out of it? How God would put him back together again? His Father would take care of him and somehow, even in his shattered state, he could rest in that.

When your life is splattered at the bottom of the wall, turn your heart to Him and you will see afresh that we have a King who knows how to put broken lives back together again. With the assurance of God’s unfailing love for us, regardless of our circumstances, we can rest assured that He ultimately will do for us what no one could do for poor Humpty Dumpty.

YOUR JOURNEY…

• Are you experiencing, or have you experienced, a season of feeling broken and shattered?
• How do those seasons impact your relationship with God? Are you able to be honest and transparent in your prayers, even if that means pouring out your frustration and grief to Him?
• How does it encourage you to know that God’s love—no matter what—is unfailing and constant?
  

HEY YOU IN THE CORNER!

“So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” 1 Corinthians 10:31

I’ve always been intrigued by the nursery rhyme about Little Jack Horner. At first blush it seems rather cute and innocent. But on further reflection, there is something seriously wrong. The closing line describes the self-congratulating boy with his plum-covered thumb held high saying, “What a good boy am I!” But if he is all that good, what is doing in a corner? As I recall, it’s bad boys who get sent to sit in a corner. And all the pictures that I remember have him sitting there with a whole pie on his lap. I have never known a mother to give her kid a whole pie! It’s conceivable that he stole it from the kitchen. And if you don’t like my take on the story, then I need to ask you: What is he doing with his fingers in the food breaking every social standard of good eating habits? Then to top it off, he finds a plum in the pie (what did he expect from a Christmas plum pie?) and lifts it high, giving himself the credit for finding the plum. The least he could have done was to shout the praises of his mom for buying the plums and then baking them into the pie!

But before we are too hard on Jack, let’s take a good look at ourselves. Compared to a lot of people, we feel pretty good about ourselves. It’s easy to feel self-congratulatory about a lot of things. But in reality the applause is undeserved. Scripture affirms what we already know. When we are honest with ourselves, we have to agree with what God says when He claims that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). We are not intrinsically good. Oh, we may do good things now and then, but at the core we are fallen and sinful. We are born with the curse of sin, and we can’t help ourselves. Which is why, when we finally do something good, we become proud and turn the good deed into an occasion to celebrate ourselves.

From God’s point of view, we are in the corner for a reason. And in spite of our self-congratulatory ways, we find ourselves with far too much pie on our lap and with our fingers in the food too often!

Most serious, however, is our tendency to take the credit for our abilities and accomplishments when the credit belongs to God. Let’s face it—and I want to be gentle here—we would be nothing if God had not given us our brains, the opportunities to succeed, the cleverness to stay ahead of the curve in the marketplace, and, for some, the physical features to turn a head now and then! All that we are and have comes from Him. As James reminds us, “Every good and perfect gift is from above” (James 1:17). But there we are, forgetting all of this and with raised hand showing off all that God has provided for us, taking the credit for it as we boldly proclaim, “What a good boy am I!”

It’s a serious thing to rob God of the glory that is due His name (Isaiah 48:11). So let’s determine that we will tactfully give God the credit for all that we are and are able to do. If He’s been good to you (and He has), get out of the corner and let your world know who it was that put the plum on your thumb!

YOUR JOURNEY…

• In what ways can you identify with Little Jack Horner? Is there an act of sin, or even a pattern of sin, that you have felt proud of?
• To get the full context of Paul’s advice to glorify God in everything we do, read 1 Corinthians 10:23-31. Is there a personal conviction you need to set aside in order to be a help and encouragement to a fellow believer?
• Think about the things God has given you—your brain, your talents, your family—and take the time to praise Him specifically for each of those things. Then take it one step further and ask Him to help you use those things for His glory and not your own.
  

THREE DOLLARS’ WORTH OF GOD

“So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth” Revelation 3:16

Most of us can blow through three dollars without even thinking twice. It’ll get you a cup of Starbucks, a few snacks for a road trip, or a squeak toy for your new puppy. But one thing is for sure: it won’t buy you soul-to-soul intimacy with the Creator of the universe.

Someone once wrote: “I’d like to buy three dollars’ worth of God. Please, not enough to explode my soul or disturb my sleep, but just enough to equal a cup of warm milk or a snooze in the sunshine. I want ecstasy, not transformation. I want the warmth of the womb, not a rebirth. I want a pound of the eternal in a paper sack. I’d like to buy about three dollars’ worth of God, please.”

I wonder if you are among those who want just enough of God to get yourself to a comfortable place, but not enough to pay the price of a deepening relationship with Him. If we want to be in tight with Jesus, we’ve got to abandon the idea that a mere acquaintance with Him is enough and that we have all we really need in and of ourselves. Self-sufficiency is life’s greatest barricade when it comes to intimacy with God.

I find it interesting that all the “self” terms we throw around make us wither with guilt. Just say the word self-centered and we wince. The same applies to self-indulgent and self-serving. But when we think of self-sufficiency, our eyes glaze over with pious apathy. We don’t consider it as much of a no-no as the other “self” sins. But, I’m telling you, with God self-sufficiency is a big deal.

In fact, Jesus reproved the Laodiceans about their self-sufficiency in no uncertain terms. He said, “because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth” (Revelation 3:16). The Laodiceans were three-dollar Christians. Their self-sufficiency blinded them to their great need for Jesus. They didn’t have many material needs—in fact the text says that they were loaded—so they thought they didn’t need God. But in their self-sufficient attitude they had left Jesus standing outside the door of their hearts. They had enough of Him to get into heaven, but He didn’t have much of them in return!

But Jesus didn’t give up on the Laodiceans, just like He doesn’t give up on you and me. He wants to be much more than the divine “911” call of our lives—only hearing from us in moments of desperation and emergency. He wants us to abandon ourselves in our quest for intimacy with Him. He wants our souls to reach out for Him with passionate desire every day! I think the psalmist said it best when he wrote, “My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?” (Psalm 42:2). That’s a far cry from being satisfied with a measly three dollars’ worth of Him.

Ever feel there should be something more to your life? It’s Jesus you’re looking for—and a lot more than three dollars’ worth! If you’re looking for transformation, rebirth, and enough of God to “explode your soul,” you will only find it in a self-sacrificing, intimate relationship with Jesus Christ—and that is priceless.

YOUR JOURNEY…

• Do you have a three-dollar relationship with God? Pray and ask God to give you a sense of your need for him. Incorporate Acts 17:28 into your prayer.
• Read Colossians 1:15-20. Do you think it’s possible to buy three dollars’ worth of God based on this passage? Why or why not?
• True intimacy with God comes from accepting Christ as Savior. Have you done this? If not, read Romans 3:10-18, 23; 5:8; 6:23; and 10:9. Pray and ask Jesus to be your Savior.
• The letters Christ wrote to the churches in the book of Revelation are about their ongoing sin. If Christ were to write you a letter about patterns of unconfessed sin in your life, what would the topic(s) be?
  

TRUE TRUTH

“Prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit” 2 Peter 1:21

Remember the days of the multivolume encyclopedia? Not long ago nearly every home had a set gathering dust on the bookcase.

Not anymore, thanks to computer technology. Research materials are now condensed into easily searchable CD-ROMs. And the unprecedented growth of the Internet gives us a staggering amount of information, literally at our fingertips.

One of the most interesting variants is “Wikipedia”—a completely online, free encyclopedia compiled by contributions from its users. It can be a helpful, fascinating source of information, but somehow the idea of everyone contributing their “two cents” to an article makes me a little uneasy about using that information as a primary source of authority and reliability.

Hopefully you are not among them, but some skeptics view the Bible as if it were compiled like a Wikipedia article. With more than 40 contributing authors spanning several centuries, they say, it cannot be completely accurate. But Scripture sets the record straight. There is only one author. Peter wrote, “Prophecy never had its origin in the will of man” (2 Peter 1:21). In other words, we are not reading the mere thoughts of Moses, David, Isaiah, Paul, or Peter. Rather, the words of the Bible come directly from God, put to paper by men “as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”

Which means that we find incredible unity, clarity, and commonality flowing through the Old and New Testaments. The truths expressed in Daniel’s writing from the palace courts of Babylon are mirrored in John’s words from the isle of Patmos, hundreds of years later. The themes of God’s character, of man’s rebellion, and of God’s glorious plan of redemption wind their way through each page. Further additions, revisions, or retractions are unthinkable and unnecessary because God’s Word is confidently complete.

If what you need is a quick glance at the history of jazz music, the opinions and perspectives offered in Wikipedia might be helpful. But, if you’re looking for meaning and purpose and the answers to life’s deepest questions, a multiplicity of conflicting opinions won’t help.

Thank God that He has given us what we need for every challenge and crossroad of life as His clear and trustworthy voice speaks to us through His Word!

YOUR JOURNEY…

• What are the dangers of treating God’s Word like Wikipedia?
• How does your view of the authority of God’s Word affect your commitment to live by it?
• How are the themes of God’s Word tied together between the Old and New Testaments?