The World and Everything In It

Full disclosure: I am the youngest of six. 

So when it comes to the topic of influence, which came to my mind basically out of nowhere this morning, I will say that I credit birth order as having had an influence on me, as I believe it has influenced my older siblings as well. 

That influence, on them and on me, has explained, at least to me, some of our personality traits. 

For me, birth order has encouraged a rebellious nature, specifically against authority.

One repeated episode is this: I am just about to do something, when someone comes along and tells me to do that very thing. Suddenly, I no longer want to do it. Though I may do it, I will not do it with the original cooperative spirit.

I would imagine this describes one facet of most people’s world of internal thought.

We are all spinning tops of perspective and information in-take. We whirl around in what, to us, is not “our own little head” but a rather intimately curated and quite large universe consisting of heart, head, soul, spirit and physical body. 

This compilation of human entity, to me, only reinforces that there is a God, because I don’t know of any human or computer who could devise so many individual beings on such a complex level. 

Evolved? 

I sat and watched a song bird this morning perched on the balcony railing, and I thought,

“Weird that some people think that that bird is a distant relative. No way. If we all evolved from the same locus, why can’t I fly and that bird compute mathematical equations?” 

And this tangent is further proof of the whirling dervish of random thought: welcome to my, and I would imagine, most people’s world.

What is on our minds is at once plain and colorful; one dimensional and multifaceted; joyful and full of consternation, morphing from one meteoric moment to the next.

We toss these conjurings about and into the air like so much pizza dough, catching them as they land and then throwing more theoretical musings—the basel and fresh mozzarella of our rapid-fire brain—on top, not able to even remember how we went down this rabbit hole in the first place.

This ponderous cacophony is what some folks attempt to distance themselves from through television, reading suspense novels, shopping, drinking alcohol, attending sporting events, playing loud music or working overtime. 

But I see these brain implodes as housecleaning, a sort of R.E.M of wakefulness, leading us to perhaps an insight—an insight of God—that stands out in that it actually makes Godly sense and transforms us, renewing our minds as the Bible reinforces (Romans 12:2; Proverbs 3:5-6).

These sprouts of wisdom, planted and watered by God and daydreamed into existence, are a worthy redeeming of our time for what they wrought in us. Which is why, I would submit, that children do it so much and adults seldom understand or allow it. 

“Johnny is distracted?” 

No, actually; Johnny is doing exactly what his God-given brain is created to do. 

Christians love the term “steward.” 

We are to be “good stewards” of all that God privileges us with: time, money, talents and material blessings. 

But what about being a steward of thoughts that begin with the question, 

“Let’s face it, what is it really, all about?” 

Or begins with a “I’m not gonna lie, I’m not feelin’ it today” (meaning, I’m just not feeling much of anything at all. Complacency). 

Many of us, especially some of us Christians who think our spiritual life absolutely does not allow for this sort of “navel gazing” or dispassionate outlook, may feel compelled to spiritualize these dispositions away by condemning ourselves for lack of faith, or claim “Satanic attack” or ask God to take this “doubt” away.

And there are times for that—where we do have a lack of faith that needs shoring up, and we are besieged with the oppression of this worldly darkness, and are plagued by something that we clearly need to return to Scripture for in order to gain clarity.

But there are also times when, opening the door to our favorite local cafe, or resting on a city bench and blankly staring out, or observing life at a bus stop, we honestly and unashamedly embrace life as it is: not as it should be, not as we think it should be, not as we think it could be but isn’t, not in defeatism, not in optimism, but just as it is. 

Only. What we see. As it is.

We simply allow the reality to sink in. And we take that—that which we platonically notice—to God. 

We put it down in front of Him and we say, 

“Here you go, God. I can’t make heads or tails of it. And to be honest, I really don’t want to. But I’ve enjoyed sitting here. Watching. And in that, being a part of it.”

Or maybe, cleansed from all pretense, our hearts and minds leap together and for this one second in time, finally, we do “get” it!

Either way, God will use it. We may never know, but He will—with us, and maybe, too, with those who are in the picture.

See, influence is not always an active verb originating with us. Oftentimes it accomplishes a lot more by being passive. 

And by that I mean, similar to the way birth order works on each one of us, influence sometimes needs to happen to us and it needs to happen to us first by the very folks we thought we were supposed to influence. 

And in this case, unlike birth order influence, this others-first influence happens to us when we stop ourselves—everything about us—long enough to wait, listen and see. We release foregone conclusions, presuppositions, cliched estimations of people or situations. 

And we no longer carry any “I’m gonna make a difference” placard. 

Influence happens when we clear the slate and just look and see. 

Two things will happen: first, “look and see that the Lord is good” (Psalm 34:8) and “be still, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10) will come into play because we are able to see God’s perspective and potential by shutting off our warped attitudes towards people, places and groups, or our “helpiness” mode.

Second, Godly wisdom supplants our superficial summations often laced with superiority. In other words, we are greatly and constructively humbled. More of Christ, less of us (John 3:30).

We go away influenced by and in the renewed sense of God’s greatness. 

And in that attitude and disposition, we may unwittingly be a Godly influence in the world somewhere. And by unwittingly I mean not a strived for but an organic, undetected, continuous outworking of a contentment and comfortableness with simply observing, from God’s blank slate, life around us. 

That is where this morning’s pondering—which began with staring out a window—led me. 

I’m glad I took the time.

Copyright Barb Harwood

Stop. Don't. Come Back

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12).

Every time I read Ephesians 6:12 I am crushed in Spirit at how many times I fall for the dark side. 

Sometimes that dark side poses as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14), but not always. 

Sometimes it claims victory by using us as its agents by tapping into our self-righteousness.

Think about it: every time we have “run-ins” with people, ongoing conflict, thorns in our side—be it in the form of individuals, groups, families, political parties, or situations—what has our motivation been? More precisely, what has our motivation which is driving the attitude been?

Look at motivation and we quickly discover why all of the components in the above scenarios become, and often remain, life-long nemeses. 

And oh, does society ever make it easy to hit the repeat button in this modus operandi!

In fact, we’ll notice that the general public even desires it from us, because it is how most of them operate too. 

Just take the “high road” some time, and discern the almost resentment-like response of those around. 

Try to defend the person being gossiped about and we will often be met with immediate defensiveness from the person originating the gossip. Initiate the gossip ourself and notice how readily another person joins in on the dump-fest.

Try to keep any conversation positive and we are frequently met with “yeah, but” or “but what about…?” Or the other person may stop talking entirely and we’ll be met with a perpetual chill in all further interactions.

It seems that the pits of animosity, begrudgement, divisiveness, character-assassination, finding fault, and a superiority complex are as prevalent as the potholes in many cities. We’re going along, and suddenly, unbeknownst, wham!, our front end is now out of alignment due to a gaping hole we didn’t see coming. 

It’s the same with spiritual battle.

We will be going about our day, and all of a sudden we are hearing our very own mouth form and speak aloud criticizing words and feel our hearts possessing selfish and partisan attitudes (or we’ll be on the receiving end of such and retaliate in our own inner thought-life). 

Over time, and with cultural acceptance, we get to the place of autopilot, and only when confronted with God’s Word, or a Godly example of God’s Word in action, are we—if we know Christ—convicted (and if we’re on the receiving end, we’ll see the attack for what it really is).

Ephesians 6:12 explains why we let it happen in the first place: because we failed to recognize it as a spiritual battle (whether we are the perpetrator or the receiver: oftentimes, as the receiver, we quickly morph into perpetrator mode via our passionate defense of our self).

Ephesians 6:12 is the “out;” the antidote to spiritual attack which we, in Christ, can control by simply recognizing it for what it is, and committing to not going there. 

It is like the words of Gene Wilder, playing the character of Willy Wonka, when he tells the little boy who is about to embark on a very unwise course of action, “Stop. Don’t. Come back.”

That is what Ephesians 6:12 is telling us. 

The first thing to recognize in order to turn off the auto-pilot on our illicit shooting from the hip is that these interactions, and the motivations behind them, are enlisted to bring the dark powers of this world into play.

Using another movie example, why do so many people like the Star Wars movies? 

Because there is a dark side and a light side. 

Everyone loves the light side in these movies, and sit on the edge of their seats almost yelling at the movie screen for Luke Skywalker to not go to the dark side: 

“Don’t go over to it!” we want to scream.

“Don’t let the dark side win!! Resist it! Tap into the Force! Stay the course!”

It’s right there in front of us in these movies—a constant presence—and we all get it. It’s no big mystery. The battle is clear, and it underlies everything.

But in real life? 

We act like we have no clue. 

We let ourselves grow ignorant and dense toward the dark side—some even saying it doesn’t exist!! 

Some people, bless their souls, say deep down everyone is good. But they are confused: the truth is, if anyone is good at all, it is only because God Himself is the only Good (Mark 10:18; Luke 18:19), and we can have His goodness instilled in us via His Holy Spirit when we believe that Jesus is who Jesus says He is (Luke 13:34-35; John 1:9-13; John 3; John 8:12-47; John 14:16-17; 2 Peter 1; 1 John 5:1-4).

But the dark side still beckons (John 1:5; John 3:19; Acts 26:18; 2 Timothy 2:26; Peter 1:19). 

Certainly Christians are not exempt from temptation (1 Corinthians 10:12-14). 

That is why 1 Peter 5:8-9 says, 

“Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world."

Unlike the Star Wars movies, with their beautifully human-created metaphors for darkness and light, in Scripture darkness and light are not metaphors. They are clearly spelled out: Jesus is light (John 1:1-5; John 3:19-21; John 8:12; John 12:46; Colossians 1:13;) Satan is dark (John 8:44; 2 Corinthians 4:4; Ephesians 2:2; 1 Peter 5:8-9; 1 John 5:19)

With the guidance of the Holy Spirit who reveals all things to us (John 14:26), we come to see Jesus and Satan clearly and are given the warning and wisdom to know the difference, and to respond (not react) as the Christ-followers we are.

The point is, when we miss the reality of darkness--of it lurking like a lion waiting for someone to devour--we fall into its snare and are now the very perpetrators of darkness. 

The Bible warns that if we think we stand, be careful that we don’t fall (Luke 18:9-14; 1 Corinthians 10:12). 

Not to say we cower and become paranoid. No. We go out in confidence that, though evil is surely there, we are at peace in Christ that, since He has overcome it (John 1:5; John 16:33) we in the Spirit can, and will, also (2 Thessalonians 3:3). 

It means carrying Christ’s discernment, not ours, with us, so that we resist the attempts from the rulers, powers and forces of wickedness mentioned in Ephesians 6:12

So, going forward, when we see that infuriating person coming down the hall, that nosy neighbor out walking their dog, that car cutting in front of us, that waitress not performing to our self-righteous standards, that political enemy on television...whoever it is that justifiably or unjustifiably provokes us—instead of seeing a person, neighbor, car, waitress, politician or provocation, we see darkness and wickedness—not in them but in us—in our reaction, in our take-away, in our attitude and our hate. 

We have that “aha!” moment in which we quickly surmise that we are about to be punked by the devil himself. 

Is that what we want? To be a pawn in the pull-strings of darkness?

Do we like seeing Luke Skywalker go to the dark side? No!

So let’s not like it when we go there either. 

The key is to stay in the Light. Jesus is the light. 

If Christ alone is our portion, and we allow His life to rule in us, then we will resist the devil and the devil will flee (James 4:7). 

Copyright Barb Harwood

Gladness

Very early today, in a dark and foggy pre-dawn, after dropping some folks off at the bus depot, I spontaneously pulled into the parking lot of a favorite local coffee shop. 

The cozy lighting from within the cafe had beckoned to me as I sat in my car at the red light, and in that moment, when the light turned green, I said, “I’m going for some coffee.”

Once inside, I told the young woman who took my order that I had never been in this coffee shop when it was empty. Being one of the more popular spots in the city, due to its location and aesthetic, by 9 am onward it is nearly impossible to find an open seat to sit. 

So I relished the altered 6:30 am hushed atmosphere—with only what appeared to be a retiree reading and a college student focused on her laptop. 

I chose a table by the window and sat, with scone and coffee. 

And that’s all I did. Sat.

In front of me, halfway across the room, was a tall vertical window framing the outside branches of a tree lined with twinkling clear Christmas lights, and the hanging Edison-style lights of the outdoor courtyard. 

The snow still remaining on the ground glowed white in the dimness of damp morning. 

I sat and thought, “I could be a million miles away, or I could be here. This window scene could be anywhere.”

And here is where I was. And so I sat. Glad. 

I was very glad to be here in this spot: with the window, the lights; the full composition.

And I thought, what a good and Godly gift joy is. 

Joy: germinated by His fruition of single-minded appreciation—absent of critique, pressing issues of the day and all that pollutes joy’s clarity which resides, steadfast, just under the surface of things. 

Even in difficulty—in unavoidable challenging confrontations, in the dissension that often precedes peace—unbiased unconditional joy has been granted to us by Jesus Christ. We enact it by not quenching His Spirit with a hardened heart (1 Thessalonians 5:19; Hebrews 3). 

I remained there, in unquenched Spirit, in the being-ness of Christ—wondering nothing, surmising nothing, fathoming nothing—just glad in the cheer and charm of the moment and the beginning of another day. 

Copyright Barb Harwood

“You have put gladness in my heart.” Psalm 4:7a

“These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.” John 15:11

“But now I come to You; and these things I speak in the world so that they may have My joy made full in themselves.” John 17:13 

All I Know Is...The Love of Christ

I just finished reading a book on "church" history, and I must say, it gives me great pause as I sit back, utterly baffled.

But then again, nothing should surprise me anymore. 

If one were to make the tragic mistake of reading “church” history before having stumbled upon and taking note of Jesus Christ, it would be understandable that they would reject Him, and anything associated with Him, outright. 

So my advice is, don’t read “church" history! 

All joking aside, it boggles my mind how mankind (ironic, isn’t it, that we always say “mankind” when, in fact, man was not kind at all????)—could make such a mockery of the Book of Acts church, i.e. turned the living community of Christ into a horrid egotistical despotic hierarchy of terror and persecution.

I, as a follower of and carrier of the Spirit of Christ, do not count “church" history my history or Christ’s history or His true disciples’ history (and of course, many textbooks gloss over or do not address at all other aspects of church history: the early apologists who held a sincere and authentic faith in Christ and wrote prolifically about it. These documents do not readily appear in the historical record of public teaching institutions).

Not to say authentic sincere Christians haven’t sinned. 

Look, I get it: these tyrants in the name of religion did not have it right, as their religion was so mucked up with politics and many other things, that it wasn’t even Christianity. 

They did not have the Word to read and study for themselves, along with other true believers. 

They were at the mercy of those who were blinded from the truth themselves; a cycle which continued until the Reformation, when the Bible finally started getting into the locals’ hands, in their language, under the teaching and guidance of the Holy Spirit in those who taught them and encouraged them to read Scripture for themselves.

Which is why I vehemently encourage people to a consistent reading of the Bible, and often become frustrated when they do not. 

Because as we read in 1 and 2 Timothy, many are out to mislead us and betray Christ Himself. 

“Church” history is still in play, although often disguised now under banners of enlightenment, intellectualism, legalism, conservatism, liberalism, pop-culturism, consumerism and science-ism (and I am not against science: but it is not the final word on anything, as anyone who has suffered a medical condition can attest, or who continues to read, every so often, that the missing link this time, has indeed been found! I’ve lost count as to how many “Lucys” have walked the earth!)

Anyway, after reading the distressing account of “church” history from it’s very germination to the recent past, I am more encouraged than ever that, in spite of man’s ability to co-opt Jesus Christ for themselves and their agendas (just as they do politics, charities and education systems, to name a few) man also had, and has, the greater integrity to stand firm in the true Jesus.

This is the Jesus the true followers are attracted to. Because we know that, although we cannot often explain exactly how it happened (which simply proves God has kept some things too wonderful to know for a later time), we know that, through the intricate sufferings and unexplainable gentle providences that came to us in the form of:

our babies, 

the sparkling laughing eyes of our spouse,

the wagging of a dog’s tail, 

the sudden running into a warm acquaintance on the street, 

the anticipation of sitting over coffee with a “friend who sticks closer than a brother,”

the glory of a million delicate snowflakes, heralding down from a city sky, landing like a lace doily to adorn the outer windowsill, 

the unmoving waters of Lake Michigan at 5:00 am on a humid summer morning, 

the inaugural chirping of birds after an eternal winter…..

freedom from an addiction...

a re-birthed marriage...

forgiveness granted to a family member...

All I know is, not only was I blind and now I see (John 9:25), but now I know the love behind all of this, that created all of this! (Colossians 1:16).

I know it through Christ, who first loved me to teach me what love even is, and then said it was okay, even expected, that I now love myself (1 John 4:19). 

Before I encountered any of this, in spite of societal permission to love myself, I could not. 

No matter how many platitudes about how great I am adorned my walls, regardless of the growing collection of Girl Scout patches sewed onto my sash, in spite of excellent grades in school, in spite of a husband who adored me, on the inside I did not love myself because, I realize now, I did not know love itself. 

Therefore, it was a struggle to love others.

Christ gave me permission to love myself and I took it, because I understood, first and finally, what love actually is, and it is Christ. 

I love myself because He created me. He loved me into existence. 

And having received His love for me, that is when I began to learn what love is and that it is contrary to human love in that it is consistent, sure, permanent, unconditional and yet with expectations, and forgiving. 

That is how Christ initially enabled me to love myself, and, over time, increasingly so, and then, over time, to love others with this same love. 

Obviously it is a process and not a snap of the fingers. And daily interaction with Christ is key to an increasing knowledge of, and sharing of, His love. 

This love is not pride in myself: it is confidence in Christ. 

All I am talking about: this Christ love—was and is missing from most of “church” history. But that history isn’t our, as believers, history. And it isn’t Christ’s history. 

We who follow Christ are continuing to build a history that has always been there: a history of Christ that may never get its due in the history books or among the intelligentsia and antagonistic and atheistic theologians. 

But it will play out in the veins of life that carry the blood of Christ to those we encounter, and we don’t have to travel far. 

We take it in daily, this love, and in turn, live it out in steady exuberance, as if to say in everything we think and do:

“See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are.” 1 John 3:1a

The second half of the above verse is this:

“For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.” 1 John 3:1b

For much of “church” history, many within the “church” did not know the love the Father bestowed on them, and so could not and would not live as God’s children. They did things and taught things that directly opposed Him. 

We leave all of that to God. 

We take note of, and are grateful for, the early writers and apologists (defenders) who helped pave the path of Christianity before Bibles were available. 

We discover and study the vibrant thread of Christ that has been overshadowed by a loud, jarring “church” history.

We go forth in Christ, not ashamed—increasingly knowing fully whom we believe, convinced that He is able to guard what we have entrusted to Him until that day, retaining the standard of His sound words, in the faith and love which are in Christ Jesus (paraphrase of 2 Timothy 1:12-13).

We soberly and yet with joy, “guard through the Holy Spirit who dwells in us, the treasure which has been entrusted" to us (2 Timothy 1:14). 

Amen.

copyright Barb Harwood