The Open Place With No Doors

There are doors that only a few people ever use.

One of the things about working somewhere in that you see a side of the business that only people who work there see. You go into rooms and drawers that no one else has access to.

We are curious creatures. We want to see what is underneath and behind things but that isn't always good.

"Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, I am the LORD your God. You shall not do as they do in the land of Egypt, where you lived, and you shall not do as they do in the land of Canaan, to which I am bringing you. You shall not walk in their statutes. You shall follow my rules and keep my statutes and walk in them. I am the LORD your God. You shall therefore keep my statutes and my rules; if a person does them, he shall live by them: I am the LORD. None of you shall approach any one of his close relatives to uncover nakedness. I am the LORD. You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father, which is the nakedness of your mother; she is your mother, you shall not uncover her nakedness. You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father's wife; it is your father's nakedness. You shall not uncover the nakedness of your sister, your father's daughter or your mother's daughter, whether brought up in the family or in another home. You shall not uncover the nakedness of your son's daughter or of your daughter's daughter, for their nakedness is your own nakedness... You shall not uncover the nakedness of a woman and of her daughter, and you shall not take her son's daughter or her daughter's daughter to uncover her nakedness; they are relatives; it is depravity. And you shall not take a woman as a rival wife to her sister, uncovering her nakedness while her sister is still alive." - Leviticus 18:2-10, 17-18 ESV

I only quoted part of that passage but more categories of people are listed. It may seem a bit vulgar to quote from this passage but it is important that we understand where lust comes from. It doesn't start with wanting something. It starts with seeing something.

A thief is looking in his or her mind in places they are not allowed to be and thinking of things that don't belong to them. An addict has often opened a door that should never have been opened and some part of their mind longs for some taste that should never have been tasted in the first place.

Perhaps you have seen something you shouldn't have seen. Now what? We live in a time where images are everywhere and neon signs point to doors no one should enter.

"Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness, and their talk will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, who have swerved from the truth, saying that the resurrection has already happened. They are upsetting the faith of some. But God's firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: 'The Lord knows those who are his,' and, Let everyone who names the name of the Lord depart from iniquity. Now in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver but also of wood and clay, some for honorable use, some for dishonorable. Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work. So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels." - 2 Timothy 2:15-23 ESV

Flee youthful lusts. Be washed in the water of the word. Decide what you are going to be. God sees everyone who is washed in the blood as a vessel of honor. What does a vessel of honor see? Where do they go? What do they think about?

"And take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth, for my hope is in your rules. I will keep your law continually, forever and ever, and I shall walk in a wide place, for I have sought your precepts." - Psalm 119:43-45 ESV

"For who is God, but the LORD? And who is a rock, except our God? - the God who equipped me with strength and made my way blameless. He made my feet like the feet of a deer and set me secure on the heights. He trains my hands for war, so that my arms can bend a bow of bronze. You have given me the shield of your salvation, and your right hand supported me, and your gentleness made me great. You gave a wide place for my steps under me, and my feet did not slip." - Psalm 18:31-36 ESV

Grace is the wide place. There are no doors there. Jesus is the narrow gate but once you pass through you and I enter into a wide place of freedom that is open and has purity.

"On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, 'Peace be with you.' " - John 20:19 ESV

Jesus didn't use the door. He doesn't explore hidden places because nothing is hidden to Him. In Christ we have that also. We have a purity that isn't looking to uncover. We are in the wide place of grace.

--

Prayers Of Mercy For Those Who Are Outside

Here is a prayer we can pray for people...

'God. Please don't give that person what they deserve. Then use it to open their eyes to Your mercy and grace.'

The mob never cries out, 'Give mercy! Don't hurt them!' but we are not ones to join the mob. If a person is 'a user' and they don't repent people will eventually be lining up for their pound of flesh. Isolation is inevitable. We can be the ones who represent a divine mindset. We can have the great privilege of being 'mercy people' because God has had mercy on us.

Jesus asked his Father to forgive the people who were crucifying Him while it was happening. What the mob was shouting at Him was dark but the words Jesus uttered were a ray of light in the darkness. His mercy words will be remembered forever.

I don't think we are called to be doormats. We set boundaries and enforce them but it all can be done living in an attitude of love, mercy and grace.

In the mission in Florida where I received Christ the policy about drugs and alcohol were very straightforward. If you show up drunk you won't be spending the night. You are going to have to sleep it off somewhere else. God loves you and we care about you but that isn't happening here. We need to protect the people who are staying under this roof and hanging on by a thread. We can't let you drag them down. If you still need a place to stay tomorrow you are welcome here and the past will be gone forever. If you fail again we won't chide you about last week... but you won't be sleeping here if drugs or alcohol are in your system.

I didn't understand it at first. It seemed cruel but it wasn't. It was Love.

Sometimes it was me who had to send them off into the night and I learned to pray, 'Father, Have mercy on them. Protect them. Help them. Save them from what is out there and from themselves.'

These are good prayers to pray, aren't they? I think they are.

God is the One who can change hearts. We are the ones who can ask Him to do it.

--

Swimming And Breathing

When I was a younger man I loved to swim. I loved to get buffeted by the waves on the beach and I loved to put on my googles and swim in the pool. Diving into the water was exhilarating. I loved to do laps and push off the wall and go as far as I could under water before taking a breadth of air. There was something exciting about staying under water and fighting the urge to get air until the last moment.

The muffled world under water is reversed somehow. Gravity keeps us on the ground. We dream we can fly but can only jump so high before our feet find themselves back on the ground. When you swim the surface of the water is the ground and the water is like the air. Underneath you can fly. With flippers and goggles you can gain speed with visibility.

Yesterday I thought of this verse as we spoke to people addicted to drugs and it seems out of place but none the less it is what I was thinking about.

"And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul." - Genesis 2:7 KJV

Did Adam gasp for air like a swimmer returning to the surface after a long dive? Did he scramble a moment in panic and feel the surge of life? Maybe it was a gentle inhale and exhale that was no event at all worth mentioning but maybe it wasn't. One day I'll ask him if I still care about the answer once I meet him.

I find faith to be like swimming used to be for me. I dive in and get back out dripping with water just to head back to the board and dive again. At times we save those who don't know how to swim or get a cramp and need help making it to shore.

I don't know any lifeguards that hated to swim before they took their test but I do know people who stopped loving to swim because swimming became a job.

Life without that panicked moment when I inhale sweet precious air is just a job... a thing to endure until something else comes along.

I am not a young man anymore. Adventure seems to take a toll on my body and it isn't only because of age. It is tempting to play things safer because of the price involved but that is not living it is just existing.

So in I go again. I'll travel to the water where people are drowning and I'll jump in to save them. That struggling soul is worth more than all the world. At the same time I want to just jump in and swim even if it's just to climb up the ladder dripping wet and take another dive off the board. There is another world under the water with God. The rules are different there. I can fly there with Him when I live by faith.

That is what every addict in that park needs. That is what ever person on the team who went to talk to them needs. That is what I need.

We need to breath in the free gift of God and then give it back to him and then do it again and again. That is living.

Thank you Jesus for restoring breadth to my lungs. I would have drowned without You. Your Father gave me life and You have given me my life back. I am so grateful. When I lose my way please show me where the water is. Show me where it is for this next season of life. I long to swim with You.

--