Words for the soul

Desperate Prayer

bradbarrett — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 13:10:25 +0000

Luke 18:36-43 As he drew near to Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. 36 And hearing a crowd going by, he inquired what this meant. 37 They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.” 38 And he cried out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” 39 And those who were in front rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 40 And Jesus stopped and commanded him to be brought to him. And when he came near, he asked him, 41 “What do you want me to do for you?” He said, “Lord, let me recover my sight.” 42 And Jesus said to him, “Recover your sight; your faith has made you well.” 43 And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him, glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God.

I love this story which is sad, humorous and exemplary at the same time. Sad in that this man was blind and broke, resorting to begging for money. What a humiliating and frightening situation, not knowing if you would even survive another day. The story is humorous in that he is shouting to Jesus to heal him, but many people tell him to shut up. So how does he respond to their rebukes? Does he listen to them? Does he get embarrassed that he is making a scene? No, he just shouts all the more and all the louder! (This reminds me of sibling rivalry, where one sibling will tell the other, “Stop it,” and instead of stopping they do it even more.) Then the story is exemplary in that Bartimaeus persists in prayer to Jesus until he gets what he wants and needs.

Am I that persistent? Do I want something that badly that I will keep calling out to Jesus until I get it? Do I believe so strongly that Jesus is both willing and able to help me that I won’t give up until He answers?

Fundamentally, prayer (which this story is essentially about) requires two basic attitudes in us: 1. We must want something badly like Bartimaeus, and 2. We must believe that Jesus has the power and the willingness to help us.

I must examine my own prayer life. Certainly times when I have been most desperate in prayer is when my need has been the greatest. So do not despise trials that make me desperate for Jesus’ help. Rather, welcome the trials as friends. And the times when I have been most persistent in prayer is when I am convinced Jesus loves me, cares deeply for me, and has the power to give what I ask for: “What do you want me to do for you?” he says. What a beautiful question.

Conversely, when my prayer life lacks, I may be able to simply examine these two attitudes and conclude either I don’t realize that I have much need or I don’t believe Jesus cares and has the power to help.

Be like Bartimaeus in prayer! Be hungry and desperate for help. Let nothing or no one hinder me in prayer. Let no obstacle in my life loom so large that I think Jesus cannot or will not conquer it. Believe Jesus will hear; believe and do not doubt.

Perhaps we should establish a prayer group called the Bartimaeus team who, when their prayers seem not to be heard, shout all the louder and longer until He answers!

An Unpopular Bible Verse

bradbarrett — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 13:00:00 +0000

“…any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 14:33 ESV)

Pastor and author William MacDonald says this about Jesus’ words:

“Verse 33 is probably one of the most unpopular verses in the entire Bible. It explicitly states that “Whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple.” There is no evading the meaning of the words. They do not say that a person must be willing to forsake all. Rather they say that he must forsake all. We must give the Lord Jesus credit for knowing what He was saying. He realized that the job would never be done in any other way. He wants men and women who esteem Him more than everything else in the world.”

Is there anything you love more than Jesus? Is there anything in this life you cling to more tightly than you do to Jesus? Cast it off today.

Be Strong in Leadership

bradbarrett — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 16:58:54 +0000

Ever feel weak-kneed when it comes to leadership? Afraid, timid? Wonder if it makes any difference?

As a counter to that very temptation, the Lord charged Joshua, “Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their forefathers to give them.“ (Josh 1:6)

Recently I was hit with a wave of timidity, wondering, “Can I really make any difference in people’s lives? Should I just quit? Why is leadership so frightening, at times?” Obviously this was not an invigorating “wave” to be hit with. But then I read Joshua yesterday and thought of the application: today in the NT era, all disciples of Jesus are in one way or another called to help others grab hold of the inheritance in heaven that Jesus offers: first, eternal life; then, all the blessings and rewards that he promises. And someone has to lead them to find all this and to go deeper with God. So the Lord charges me as a disciple, husband, dad, friend and pastor to be strong and courageous; to go lead others to grab hold of the inheritance Jesus promises. Like Joshua, I can make a difference. And I must make a difference. So by his power, I will stop being lazy or faint-hearted or self-centered or…. (fill in your own favorite sin)… and lead the people.

Be strong and courageous. You…you… will lead these people to inherit the land.

Jesus Unparalleled

bradbarrett — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 14:24:35 +0000

Matthew 8:29-32 ESV And behold, they cried out, “What have you to do with us, O Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?”…. the demons begged him, saying, “If you cast us out, send us away into the herd of pigs.” 32And he said to them, “Go.” So they came out and went into the pigs…

In this conversation between Jesus and the demons, Jesus has absolute authority over them. They had to do exactly what he told them. They pleaded for mercy (sort of) and he showed some, but note that his words compelled them—forced them—to do his bidding. We could say, like the disciples did in vs. 27 after the calming of the sea, “What sort of man is this?” He commands bodies to heal, seas to calm, and demons to go with just a word. Just the force of his word. Who is this Jesus? He is unparalleled. Mohammed, Buddha, Joseph Smith and all other religious “founders” are to Jesus what a burned-out candle is to the blazing sun. Christianity is superior to all other religions, not because it has superior morals or religious systems, but because Christ is superior. He is like no other. Col 1:15-23; 2:8-15; Heb 1:1-4, etc., trumpet this truth.

Stop being so stubborn!

bradbarrett — Sat, 26 Feb 2011 15:36:31 +0000

Psalm 95:6-11 ESV Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker! 7 For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. Today, if you hear his voice, 8 do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah, as on the day at Massah in the wilderness, 9 when your fathers put me to the test and put me to the proof, though they had seen my work. 10 For forty years I loathed that generation and said, “They are a people who go astray in their heart, and they have not known my ways.” 11 Therefore I swore in my wrath, “They shall not enter my rest.”

This warning of vs. 7-11 against a hard heart comes on the heels of a glorious exaltation and worship of God. This may seem strange at first, but it makes sense: in light of this glorious and awesome God, don’t trifle with him. Don’t walk in unbelief. Love him with all your heart. He is so great and awesome, why would you ever, ever, ever stoop to worship stupid idols or pursue your own sinful passions? Rom 2:4-5 says that we presume or show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing God’s kindness leads us to repentance. We neglect or do not appreciate the kindness and patience the Lord shows to us by waiting patiently, not killing us now. Our stubborn refusal to believe God in the face of his greatness, love and power shows how depraved our hearts really are. The logical, sensible response is faith, yet we remain stubborn. So the Psalm essentially says, “Stop being so stubborn!”

So today, two words: Stop it!

Lord, don’t you care?

bradbarrett — Mon, 21 Feb 2011 13:58:00 +0000

On the verge of drowning in a terrific storm on the lake, the disciples cry in terror, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” (Mark 1:38). How often do we say or think, “Lord, don’t you care?” Little doubt that every one of us has at least once said this. The Psalms frequently reveal such thinking. Asaph, for example: “Will the Lord spurn forever, and never again be favorable? Has his steadfast love forever ceased? Are his promises at an end for all time? Has God forgotten to be gracious? Has he in anger shut up his compassion?” (Psalm 77:7-9).

Yet the Lord gently rebukes us for our unbelief. He who can calm wind and waves with a word is a God of compassion. Yes, he cares. And Asaph in vs. 11 discovers this: “I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your wonders of old.” He reflected on the nature of God and found comfort, answering his own questions.

Today, ponder the deeds of the Lord and find courage and comfort in the storm.

Fear the Lord

bradbarrett — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 13:33:18 +0000

Leviticus 10:1-3 ESV Now Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it and laid incense on it and offered unauthorized fire before the Lord, which he had not commanded them. And fire came out from before the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord. Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord has said, ‘Among those who are near me I will be sanctified, and before all the people I will be glorified.’ ” And Aaron held his peace.

What a frightening and sobering day. May we all fear the Lord because, although the Lord does not do such things every day (and like Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5), he does eventually with all who don’t know him. His judgment will be just and severe.

God’s Compassion

bradbarrett — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 17:35:05 +0000

“Jesus in pity touched their eyes, and immediately they recovered their sight and followed him.” Matthew 20:34

Our Lord is remarkable! Why? As great and powerful as he is, I find it shocking that he is so compassionate. For on a human level, what powerful world leader has ever lived who had even a fraction of Jesus’ compassion? In almost every case, powerful rulers have proud, self-centered, conqueror’s hearts, not hearts of tenderness. Like the old quote, “Absolute power corrupts absolutely.” So who is like the Lord our God? He has not an ounce of corruption in him, holding absolute power in the left hand and absolute compassion in the right. Worship him now.

A God of Joy

bradbarrett — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 14:00:35 +0000

Do we think of God as being happy? Full of joy? Of Jesus, it is said, “He rejoiced in the Holy Spirit” (Luke 10:21). I would wager (with very good odds) that Jesus was the most joyful person on the planet, in spite of seeing people everywhere filled with pain, stubborn hearts, hateful attitudes, violence…just like we see in our world today. Even in the midst of a broken, shattered world, our God is a God of joy.
And we are called to be the same. The fruit of the Spirit is…guess what…joy (Gal 5:22)! Not anxious or stressed out or glum or surly, but joyful!
Lord, today fill me with you. Fill me up to the brim so that you overflow out of me, even joy.

God has the Power to Change!

bradbarrett — Mon, 11 May 2009 17:24:43 +0000

1 Samuel 10:6-9 ESV Then the Spirit of the Lord will rush upon you, and you will prophesy with them and be turned into another man…. When he turned his back to leave Samuel, God gave him another heart…

Saul was a tall, impressive man, but he was a coward. However, when the Spirit of God came upon him, he was changed. And changed mightily.

Let us not underestimate what the Lord can and will do in us and in any other brother we know.