Onward & Upward

Category: Uncategorized

  • On Knowing God

    From J. I. Packer’s book “Knowing God,” on page 19, he states the following:

    “If we postpone our journey till the storm dies down, we may never get started at all.”

    As I deal in my own life with frustrations of the arguing and contention over, not truth, but the expression of truth, in churches and individual lives, I am tempted to flee from it all and withdraw myself from the “journey.” my searching mind simply stops, and announces, “I don’t want to know.” But Packer is right. If my journey to know God is one that is postponed because of the perceived difficulties, it may never be started at all.

    If I am to know God, I must start today. Even though it’s raining, even though there are people problems, even if my schedule does not seem conducive to it. It must in fact be what today is all about. It must be the pursuit. It must be my purpose. And so today, a day in which I am trying to get away from things, I cannot get away from the journey to knowing God.

    Later in chapter 1, Packer explains the need to meditate as part of knowing God, and defines it as:

    the activity of calling to mind, and thinking over, and dwelling on, and applying to oneself, the various things that one knows about the works and ways and purposes and promises of God.

    And so, I must meditate, and the only way I know to do so is slowly. And that’s hard. I want everything figured out right now.

  • The Kindness of Your Cross

    Though we often look at “taking up our cross” in terms of its difficulties, there is actually kindness in it (if we will see with clear eyes). From “A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23,” by W. Phillip Keller, we read this definition of taking up our cross:

    Basically what it amounts to is this: A person exchanges the fickle fortunes of living life by sheer whimsy for the more productive and satisfying adventure of being guided by God.

    Is this not true? Is it not true that while we take up a cross that the yoke of Jesus is easy and his burden light (Matthew 11:30). As hard as it seems to follow Jesus and live according to wisdom and righteousness it is far more enjoyable than reaping the wages of foolish and unrighteousness living. Look around. See the brokenness in the world, in countries, in towns, in families? Sin brings misery and eventually death, but Christ gives rest, relief and life.

    Is there a cross in this life to take up? Without a doubt. Is it sometimes heavy? Sure. Yet it is not the same kind of burden as a load of sin. The cross, the “adventure of being guided by God,” is a kindness for which we can be grateful.

  • An Old, Yet Timeless Prayer

    I heard this prayer in a G.A. Henty audio drama my children were listening to today. It moved that part in me which strives for honorable, biblical manhood, and I thought it a good start to my personal blog. It is attributed to Sir Francis Drake, (1540-1596), an English Admiral who is most famous for circumnavigating the globe.

    Disturb us, Lord, when
    We are too pleased with ourselves,
    When our dreams have come true
    Because we dreamed too little,
    When we arrived safely
    Because we sailed too close to the shore.
    Disturb us, Lord, when
    With the abundance of things we possess
    We have lost our thirst
    For the waters of life;
    Having fallen in love with life,
    We have ceased to dream of eternity
    And in our efforts to build a new earth,
    We have allowed our vision
    Of the new Heaven to dim.
    Disturb us, Lord, to dare more boldly,
    To venture on wilder seas
    Where storms will show Your mastery;
    Where losing sight of land,
    We shall find the stars.
    We ask you to push back
    The horizons of our hopes;
    And to push back the future
    In strength, courage, hope, and love.
    This we ask in the name of our Captain,
    Who is Jesus Christ.