Catalyst

“And you will be called priests of the LORD, you will be named ministers of our God.” (Isa. 61:6)

I’m sure you’ve often heard the phrase, “Life’s not all about you,” a time or two in your life. It’s true – life is not all about us, but sometimes, when you’re in the middle of something traumatic in your life, say you had to foreclose on your dream home, or you get laid off at work; perhaps you haven’t heard from your son all day, and late that evening you hear the ominous ring of a late night call – he’s been arrested; maybe you come home late from work, and instead of walking into the aroma of a prepared meal, you are welcomed by an eerie silence and a note on the counter: your wife has gone to her mother’s with the kids and won’t be back…don’t you feel somewhat justified in desiring that, for one moment, life could be about you? Just for a moment!

“Why can’t we talk about what I want from life, what I was wanting today to turn out to be like. After all, I’ve spent my life giving and pouring myself into the lives of others; I’ve faithfully followed the precepts of Christ, obeying Him at every turn, standing in faith through crisis after crisis…and for what?!” Yes, there comes a point in the journey of perseverance when we begin to think… “God! Can’t it be about me this time? Can’t we stop everything for a moment and fix my problem now? I don’t want to do this anymore…I’m tired of persevering, and waiting, and ‘faithing’ …I want something done about my circumstances right NOW! I know You have Your plan, but why can’t we at least consider MINE for a change?!”

We all hit this juncture, some of us more often than others, but the result is still the same…cry as we might, passionately rant and rave our justification for our frustrations about why life hasn’t been fair…no matter what we do…life will still not be about us. Gee, that’s encouraging…

So, if it’s not about us, then what is life about anyway. Oh, we won’t delve too deeply into that concept; that’s an age-old question that man has attempted to answer for generations. But let us view the idea in reference to the text in Isaiah for a moment. What does this say about us as believers? The Lord calls us His priests and ministers.

“And you will be called priests of the LORD, you will be named ministers of our God.” (Isa. 61:6)

So what does that mean exactly?

The word “ministers” in this text is the Hebrew word: sharath. It is used to describe an individual, whose prime responsibility is to serve or attend a higher ranking individual, whether a public servant, officer, member of the royal family, or any other type of leader, like a servant, armor-bearer, or assistant. A “sharath” of God, however, is an individual characterized by priesthood, one who works in the temple, conducting the special tasks, performing sacred rituals, etc. as would be found in any type of worship setting. And still, while his temple tasks were important and required as apart of his “job description” in serving his Master, performing sacrifices and walking around worshipping God all day in the temple building was NOT his ultimate function as a minister. On the contrary, a sharath’s most important duty was to complete these tasks so that he could provide others access to the presence of God!

Remember what Paul said about our High Priest/Minister Jesus?

“But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ…For through Him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit….Consequently, you are…members of God's household.” (Eph. 2:13,18-19)

Christ fulfilled performing the necessary commissions of His Master, which included shedding His blood, so that the people, who believed in Him, would have access to the Father. In other words, Christ’s suffering, His ministry to the Father on earth, everything He did while He lived in the body, was not about Him…it was about providing a means for everyone to have access to a relationship with God.

That is the prime function of God’s minister: serving God and making a way for others to come near to Him. This is the life, to which Christ was called, and to which we are called…

You might be thinking, “Well, that’s comforting in a way, but it does little to stifle the sting that life just dealt me..I mean, how can you say that it ministers to God when I hurt so badly?”

I, too, have pondered that same logic many times in light of the heartaches of so many brothers and sisters in the faith as well as in retrospect with my own illness; after all, it doesn't really sound like God is who He says He is, a loving Father, if what ministers to Him are the pains His children endure, right? What parent in their right mind would want their kid to be sick for so long, go through a painful divorce, or lose their job? However, and I know how hackneyed this may sound, we have to take one thing into account: God's ways are infinitely higher than our ways. In recognizing this, I have continued to press Him on this issue, “Lord, You are the essence of love and faithfulness…so how do You justify allowing such difficult agonies to come upon Your people in light of Who You are?” In my searching, the Lord keeps answering me with one word: catalyst.

A catalyst is: “something that initiates or causes an important event to happen.”* In regards to my illness, for example, while there are a myriad of blessings being born as a result of it (things I have shared in past blog articles), a major part of the reason for my season of affliction is that it serves as His catalyst to bring about an exceedingly important event: drawing others to His throne of grace. In other words (and to borrow a popular phrase), my pain is for another's gain.

Now, put your own circumstance into the mix...what you are suffering/enduring/facing right now...what if it too were a catalyst in God’s redemptive plan of grace? Could you consider it being used as an essential element in God's gargantuan divine plan of reuniting man to Himself? Your predicament is not about you, but it’s main purpose is being used as an essential element in God's redemptive plan of reconciling man to Himself! Think about that! Your suffering is HIS tool to perform the ultimate miracle of divine grace!

Let’s look at the reverse side of the equation: How often do you ask people to pray for you when everything is going well? Would you ever go up to your pastor or accountability partner and say something like, “Hey, I just won the lottery, would you pray for me that I enjoy my wealth?” Of course not! How ridiculous would that be?! On the contrary, we ask people for their prayers when we’re in dire straits, right? Even nonbelievers ask for prayer when they are going through tough times…

Now here's the cream: what is prayer? Communication with God! And how does communication take place? When one has access to His ear, and that comes in BEING IN HIS PRESENCE!!! God desperately desires communication and relationship with the people on earth! Why else would Christ tell so many parables that discuss this very aspect of God’s nature, of Him leaving the many, who are safe, to go and find the one lost? He deeply loves all, who have been made in His image; so much so that He would have died for ONE, just ONE in order to ransom him and invite him into His family! We can’t even begin to fathom the depth of this love that God has for each and every one of us!

And once we do come into fellowship with the Lord, this is when He calls us His priests and ministers (Isa. 61:6). We are immediately granted the privilege of the position of “sharath,” being named a minister to Him in His house (which is actually within us – His Spirit abiding in us - ref. 1 Cor. 6:19, Jn. 14:17) , serving Him daily, walking in His presence, and having free reign of access in fellowship with our Master. And part of our duties? To make way for others to share and experience this same type of relational access and intimacy with our Father.

Now, how the Lord incorporates this position as part of His unique plan for our individual lives will vary. In my case, He’s used a chronic illness to inspire and propel many believers and nonbelievers to come boldly to His throne with their prayers of intercession for my healing. Though healing has seemed to evade me up to this point, the purpose of the suffering has not been negated! In fact, the longer I have remained ill, the more people have been coming into God’s presence on a regular basis. Deep relationships with the Lord have deepened; estranged relationships between believers and their Father have been realigned; some nonbelievers have come to a knowledge of His love and have been grafted into His family; and even a few hardhearted (those, who would otherwise have little desire or interest in “religious” things) have been touched, not because of me, but on account of God’s use of His catalyst, a sharath that performed her Master’s commission by taking care of the menial tasks (i.e. calling people to prayer) so that now, many can come boldly to the Lord, having gained access to His ever anticipatory ear, an ear that longs to hear the voices of His kids!

If my Master wishes to use an ailment to bring one sinner to Himself, then as His sharath, I will gladly lay down my plans and my agendas for my life so that His hopes and dreams are fulfilled! He is my Master, and my desire is to minister before Him in spirit and in Truth.

And you, as a fellow sharath, my prayer for you is that somehow the Lord would unveil in your heart a similar revelation of what it means to be His catalyst in light of your own circumstance. Have you considered that your son’s arrest might actually bring someone to Christ? Have you considered that your job loss might have just answered a desperate prayer for one of your struggling brothers or sisters in the Lord, whom you don’t know, who would have been on the streets in a matter of days had your job opening never happened?

Life is not about us…we know that; and knowledge of that reality doesn’t offer a lot of comfort either…at least, not at first. But to know that what we’re going through has a purpose? To consider our ordeals as catalysts for God’s divine plan of redemption? Now that’s something our hope can grab hold of. No matter what you’re going through, no matter what enemies you face, storms you encounter, tornadoes of pain and confusion you endure…IT IS NOT IN VAIN. Your ministry as sharath to your Master is serving a higher purpose. You are participating in God’s ultimate destiny, desire, and hope for all the world; that ALL might have access to His presence. Be encouraged, minister of the Lord! Your pain is gain.

* catalyst. (n.d.). Investopedia.com. Retrieved February 19, 2009, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/catalyst

In Light of Eternity...

(Please read "The Purpose of Psalms," May 9, 2010, for background information)


In light of eternity, these trials we face are mere vapors; in light of eternity, the darkness that so overwhelms us is but a speck of sawdust when presented before the Light of the World. In light of eternity, the joy of being in Christ’s presence banishes the sorrows of “feeling” His absence. In light of eternity, the most fearful situation is an afterthought, the most difficult temptation, a footnote; the most horrid terror, a feather tossed aside by the winds of His wings. We are eternal beings in Christ. We live for today to glorify Him, but we will live in the long tomorrow to resonate Him! Can we grasp this? Can we stand in boldness of faith that our light and momentary afflictions are producing in us an exceeding weight of glory that far surpasses them all? Though our minds are somewhat limited, our hearts are unchained by the confines of mortal man’s reasoning. We live in continuum of life to life, faith to faith, glory to glory, a gift that Christ paid dearly for us to enjoy. It’s ours! Cherish this thought – your present circumstances – that mountain so immense and foreboding that seems impossible to climb or avert; that sorrow that weighs so heavily in your heart, as if it were lead ticking within your bosom; that terror so overwhelming that your entire body trembles at its consideration – it is momentary…all of it. THAT THING that you are facing is temporal, but YOU, beloved, are eternal. You will go on, and your assaulter will bow the knee, subject under the all-sovereign name of the Lord, our Lord, the Lord of all, Jesus Christ; and through His blood, His name, His eternity, His victory, is now…yours.

Shelved, but Held

“I waited patiently for the LORD; He turned to me and heard my cry.” (Ps. 40:1)

“Do you want me to hold you?” Darcē’s (pronounced “Darsee”) bushy tail wagged ferociously, shaking the entire back half of her tiny, white 5-pound body. As I leaned over to grab her, she grunted and sneezed, patted the ground with her front paws, then rolled over on her back in surrender, so excited about the idea of being held by her mommy. Effortlessly, I lifted her off the ground, placed her securely on her usual “perch,” which is resting on my right forearm with all her four legs dangling down the sides, then, I returned to my original duty of washing the dishes with my free hand. Throughout the chore, Darcē remained completely relaxed, eyes drooping, uninterestingly observing what her momma was doing, though she really didn’t care. It didn’t phase her when I leaned down to put dishes in the dishwasher; she paid no mind to my scrubbing the sink with bleach. And it didn’t bother her that she was doing nothing “productive” at the moment, such as chasing a squirrel, barking at imaginary noises, or any of the other “tasks” of a typical “dog’s day.” She was just content to be on my arm; that was enough.

I had put Darcē to the side; I continued to do my work and complete my tasks, but Darcē did “nothing” for the duration of the time, not until I put her down later, that is. The delight was in that she wanted to be with me, and though her “life” was “shelved” for the time being, the joy of being with me surpassed the thought or concern of getting back to her “duties.”

This place of rest in the “shelved” state is what the Psalmist is referring to in the passage. The Word “patiently” in the Hebrew means, “to bind (by twisting); to collect; to gather,” as well as “to endure, to hope, to trust; be confident in.” Waiting patiently on God is akin to being bound to Him, like a braid, constantly with Him while He performs His works, fulfills His plans, and does His will, though our role may not come into play initially. Just as Darcē was “put to the side” while I worked, God sometimes does the same with us. He puts us “to the side” and continues working His plans, which may or may not include us for a while. We’re not abandoned by Him, but we’re seemingly not “moving forward” with our lives either.

You know this place. Have there ever been times when it seemed like everyone else was getting their breakthroughs, but you remained in your trial, and it even got a little worse? Those you prayed and warred for began rejoicing in their new deliverance and victory, but you were still stuck in your mess? Have you ever cried out in frustration to God, “What about me?! When’s it going to be my turn?!” We’ve all reached that place from time to time. On the one hand, we’re happy for our friends and excited that our prayers are being answered…yet on the other, we’re frustrated, maybe even a little resentful toward God, though we dare not articulate it, because…it just doesn’t seem fair! After all, we prayed just as fervently as they did and God answered their prayers, as WELL as our prayers for them; so why not ours for ourselves? “Did You forget my request, Lord? Did You ‘run out’ of blessings right before You came to me? What’s the big deal?”

Though it seems as though we are forgotten, the Truth is we are actually closer to our Shepherd while we’re waiting for His answer than we could ever be in any other time in our walks with Him. Being “put aside” in life is being placed on His arm, just as I placed Darcē on mine; it’s being “gathered” to Him while He continues to do His work. God neither sleeps nor slumbers (ref. Ps. 121:4); He is always at work behind the scenes, positioning all things into His perfect purposes. You may not be “moving forward” with your life at the moment; but that delay doesn’t mean you won’t fulfill your purposes, or that God has forgotten about them. On the contrary, God cannot forget you! (ref. Isa. 49:15) Just as ridiculous as it would be for me to forget that I was holding Darcē, so it is equally absurd that God could forget about us. We are engraved on His hands (ref. Isa. 49:16), ever before Him, and never abandoned by Him.

So then, since we are not forgotten, can we rest with that “patiently” of Ps. 40 while we wait? Can we be like Darcē, excited at the opportunity to be “put aside” from life, not concerning ourselves that our goals are not being reached, or that our breakthroughs are slow in coming, and just be thrilled at the idea of being held by our Daddy? I confess, it’s not always easy to come to be so. It is far more natural to get frustrated and in a lurch when our lives are not “going anywhere.” However, God is faithful. His Promises are “yes” and “amen” in Christ (ref. 2 Cor. 1:20); His plans are never thwarted (ref. Job. 42:2). The work He began in us will be completed (ref. Phil.1:6), but in His perfect timing…we can be confident of that.

Dear friend, if your life seems “on hold,” if you feel as though you’ve been “put aside,” and everyone else is moving forward with their dreams and goals and leaving you in the dust…don’t despair. You are not forgotten by God; in fact, you are nearer to Him than you realize, safe in His grasp even as we speak. Go ahead, adopt a “Darcē – like” “patience,” know that your life will move forward in time, your goals will be reached, and your purposes fulfilled; but for now, let it be enough to rest on your Daddy’s arm.