Unleashed: As You Go – Pray

“Now Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing with which his father had blessed him, and Esau said to himself, “The days of mourning for my father are approaching; then I will kill my brother Jacob.” Genesis 27:41

Hatred is a pattern that repeats itself for generations; often a pattern that is never broken. One of the more infamous examples of generational hatred in our nation was the Hatfield-McCoy feud that covered several decades in the 1800s. These two rural families from the West Virginia-Kentucky area lived for decades under the siege of hatred, distrust, and violence. An act of violence by one family led to a retaliatory response by the other family, and a feud developed that implanted the seeds of bitterness that bore fruit for several generations.

Scripture is filled with examples of the power of hate. We read in this Genesis passage that “Esau hated Jacob.” Their hatred set in motion a bitterness that would drive a wedge between two brothers and would ultimately live on for generations. Esau did not care about his role as firstborn and Jacob took advantage of the situation. A feud sparked out of jealousy, scheming, and hatred perpetuated until a family was split apart.

Scripture is filled with this same pattern of hatred that drove Esau and Jacob apart:

Cain in envy hatred killed Abel.

David in lustful hatred had Uriah killed.

Joseph’s brothers in jealous hatred sold him into slavery.

Absalom in revenge hatred killed his brother Amnon.

Judas in power hatred betrayed the Son of God.

Martin Luther King, Jr. understood all too well the oppressive burden of hatred.  It was a burden that he didn’t want to carry nor pass on to the next generation. “Returning violence for violence multiplies violence, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars.”

Dr. Linda Mintle writes “There is no positive benefit or place for hate other than directing that emotion to evil. Psalm 97:10 says, “Let those who love the Lord hate evil.” The way to get out of that darkness is to walk in the light and allow God to transform your heart. Forgive those who have hurt you, let go of bitterness and the need for revenge, stop thinking and ruminating about your injustices. Rather, think about how you can be part of the solution and begin opening your heart to love.”

This Native American anecdote sums up well the power of hatred. “A grandfather talking to his young grandson tells the boy he has two wolves inside of him, struggling with each other. The first is the wolf of peace, love, and kindness. The other is the wolf of fear, greed, and hatred. “Which wolf will win, grandfather?” asks the young boy. “Whichever one you feed” is the reply.”

Which wolf are you feeding? In our current culture, it is easy to find yourself feeding the wrong wolf within your soul. Jesus said “It is what comes from inside that defiles you. For from within, out of a person’s heart, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, lustful desires, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness. All these vile things come from within; they are what defile you.” Mark 7:20-23 (NLT)

Love is not the opposite of hate but, rather, is the transformer of hate into love. It must be a love that is not some cheap perfume that only masks the stench of evil, but a love that was born on a splinter-laden cross. This is the only way to overcome the power of hatred. “But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you…Do to others as you would have them do to you.” Luke 6:27-31

Lord, to love our enemies will not always be easy. Awaken in our hearts love that overcomes hatred. Stir within us mercy, just as you are merciful. Whatever we do, whomever we interact with, wherever we go, let us reflect your love. Amen

God is great

 

Unleashed: As You Go – Pray

“Jesus said to them, “Have faith in God. I tell you the truth, if someone says to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. For this reason I tell you, whatever you pray and ask for, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” Mark 11:22-24

 

Eckels felt himself fall into a chair. He fumbled crazily at the thick slime on his boots. He held up a clod of dirt, trembling, “No, it cannot be. Not a little thing like that. No!”

Embedded in the mud, glistening green and gold and black, was a butterfly, very beautiful and very dead.

“Not a little thing like that! Not a butterfly!” cried Eckels.

It fell to the floor, an exquisite thing, a small thing that could upset balances and knock down a line of small dominoes and then big dominoes and then gigantic dominoes, all down the years across Time. Eckels’ mind whirled. It couldn’t change things. Killing one butterfly couldn’t be that important! Could it?

 

Eckels is a character from Ray Bradbury’s classic science fiction story, A Sound of Thunder.  Eckels, along with the safari guide and two other hunters, had time traveled 65 million years to shoot a T-Rex dinosaur. Eckels overcome by fear and panic, steps off the time travel path impacting all of the future. Upon return to 2055, the time travelers are confused to find a changed world. Language has been altered and an evil dictator is now in charge. It was a simple misstep that changed and altered the course of history.

Though Bradbury’s story is science fiction, we do know singular events have changed the course of world history. Could they have been altered? Edward Lorenz is credited as the official discoverer of chaos theory and out of it, the term, The Butterfly Effect. The title is the layman’s term for a complex field of scientific study that says a small change in starting conditions can lead to vastly different outcomes or “does the flap of a butterfly’s wing in Brazil set off a tornado in Texas?”

Walking with Jesus on a dirt road toward Jerusalem, his disciples were taught the butterfly effect of prayer. They were told that they could move mountains. Yes, they had seen the sick healed, the dead raised to walk, the blind to see, the deaf to hear and lives restored. They knew Jesus could move mountains but how could they move mountains? What mountains would they move? Why would they want to throw a mountain into the sea?

What mountain or mountains are you facing? Maybe it is a mountain of fear, anxiety, or hopelessness. Maybe it is a mountain of rejection or loneliness. Maybe it is a mountain of family problems.

We can begin a butterfly effect of change through prayer. “When God gets ready to shake America (and the world), He may not take the PhD. and the D.D. God may choose a country boy…God may choose the man (or woman) that no one knows, a little nobody, to shake America for Jesus Christ in this day, and I pray that he would.” –Billy Graham

Instead of being overwhelmed and defeated by what we see in our culture, we take Jesus at His word. We pray the mountain of child abuse we see in our society is thrown into the sea. We pray the mountain of violence we find in the cities be thrown into the sea. We pray the mountain of sexual immorality, consumerism, prejudice, and on and on be thrown into the sea. What mountains can stand against a mountain-moving God?

“During the darkest periods of history, quite often a small number of men and women, scattered throughout the world, have been able to reverse the course of historical evolutions. This was only possible because they hoped beyond all hope. What had been bound for disintegration then entered into the current of a new dynamism.” –Brother Roger of Taizé

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, praying Believers can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has. God is ready to move mountains with us. Mountain-moving praying doesn’t make sense to the world and probably not totally to us but as Francis Chan said “something is wrong when our lives make sense to unbelievers.”

Jesus set in motion the real butterfly effect. On a cross, Jesus forever altered the course of human history. God had been at work from the beginning and now history’s timeline was marked for eternity because of the strike of a hammer on a nail.  It was a sound that has reverberated through the echoes of time. One event, marked by a cross and an empty tomb, forever changed the course of mankind.

God is great,

Pastor Lynn

Unleashed: As You Go – Pray

“So then, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; what is old has passed away—look, what is new has come!” 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NET)

Celebrating a new year represents more than just a day on the calendar, it marks a new beginning. The word new is a fairly easy concept to grasp. The dictionary defines new as “of recent origin; having existed only a short time; lately made, produced, or grown.”

So, how can one 24-hour period on January 1st make such a difference? One day it is the old year, the next the beginning of something new. Yet at the turn of the calendar page, we feel the excitement, hope, freshness, and a restored outlook as 2022 begins.

“There, where clinging to things ends, is where God begins to be. If a cask is to contain wine, you must first pour out the water. The cask must be bare and empty. Therefore, if you wish to receive divine joy and God, first pour out your clinging to things. Everything that is to receive must and ought to be empty.”

These words were written centuries ago by German theologian Meister Eckhart. However, centuries before Eckhart, Jesus responded to the accusation that he wasn’t following the regulations of fasting by saying “no one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch will pull away from the garment, making the tear worse. Neither do people pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst; the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved.” (Matthew 9: 6-17)

Jesus didn’t have a problem with fasting or keeping religious traditions. However, He did have a problem if the old kept someone in ritualistic bondage. Jesus had a problem if the old kept someone from truly enjoying their life with God.  Jesus knew the old wineskin couldn’t hold both old and new. “You must first pour out the water. The cask must be bare and empty.”

We have finally finished the annual ritual of boxing up all the Christmas decorations, moving them to the storeroom, and cleaning the house. Now we know Christmas will come in a few months, so why not just leave all the Christmas decorations up in the house? It would save a lot of time and be so much more efficient come November. Wouldn’t it be nice to enjoy Christmas all year long? Regardless of the fact, the neighbors would talk about us, keeping the house decorated for Christmas would keep us from ever enjoying the excitement of new holidays. The beautiful decorations that make Christmas special would look out of place at Easter, the 4th of July, or Thanksgiving. The old must give way to allow the new to come into our home.

Holding onto the old is big business in the United States. There is an estimated 49,233 self-storage units or enough space for every American to stand under the total canopy of self-storage roofing at the same time. This doesn’t include garage, attic, and closet storage space where we store stuff. The problem with collecting things is that you eventually run out of storage space.

Unfortunately, too many people try to horde the old and miss the new. Holding onto the old can keep us from the blessings that God would like to give us. Billy Graham told the story about a little child that was playing with a very valuable vase. “He put his hand into it and could not withdraw it. His father too, tried his best to get it out, to no avail. They were thinking of breaking the vase when the father said, “Now my son, make one more try. Open your hand and hold your fingers out straight as you see me doing, and then pull.” The little fellow said, “O no, dad, I couldn’t put my fingers out like that because if I did I would drop my dime.”

 

“As children bring their broken toys

With tears for us to mend

I brought my broken dreams to God

Because He is my friend.

But then, instead of leaving Him

In peace to work alone

I hung around and tried to help

With ways that were my own.

At last I snatched them back and cried,

How can you be so slow?

My child, He said, what could I do…

You never did let go.”

(Broken Dream by Lauretta P. Burns)

 

Could this be the year when you need to open your hand and let go of the dime in your hand to receive something far more valuable from God?

Could this be the year when you pour out the old to finally enjoy the new that God is giving you?

The new is only valuable when we are ready to open up our lives to receive it.

 

God is great,

Pastor Lynn