What you want vs what you need

"Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness."
James 1:2-3

I've been chewing over these verses for quite a while. They are two verses which imply trials of all shapes and sizes are good for the exercise of your faith. If we didn't have such trials, our faith wouldn't be strengthened.

But what's interesting is if you're a 'good Christian', you've most likely been praying for a resolution. For God to get you out of a situation, to fix things up. And then, when there seems to be no definite answer, we may start questioning why.

Our lack of faith? Perhaps we haven't been praying hard enough, or often enough. Perhaps there's some sort of spiritual battle going on, and we haven't been praying in the right way.

But the first thing these verses say is 'count it all joy'. Obviously our natural reaction is to do the opposite, to get stressed and freak out. Otherwise that particular instruction wouldn't be written. 'Count it all joy' implies the trial is a blessing, and that we have to reconfigure our pattern of thought to acknowledge that.

The verses state that our trials produce steadfastness. Jesus says elsewhere that 'the one who endures to the end will be saved' (Mark 13:13).

It seems steadfastness, perseverance and endurance are what God is developing in our lives. They are qualities of unbelievable importance, and perhaps very central to his work of regeneration. Trials, of shapes and kinds, are the process in which they are developed.

It seems that trails are often the thing we ultimately need, and not always the quick fix answer to prayer we were looking for.

Nervous Vs Fearful

I've been contemplating lately the fine distinction between being nervous and being fearful. It's easy to confuse the two, but there's a world of difference.

Being fearful means you want to run from situations. You want to run and hide, to take flight and avoid certain trials and challenges. You're afraid of what might happen, how you might perform, and you don't want to embrace the challenge. In fact, you would rather the challenge didn't exist at all.

Being nervous is different. A situation or challenge might be very daunting and you might be very unsure of how you will fare. But many people who are nervous about something are also very brave at the same time. They throw themselves head first into the fire, they put themselves on the line.

Watching shows like X-Factor and The Voice is very interesting from this perspective. Some of those guys get so nervous, but they've willingly embraced it to get a shot at achieving their goals. As Tom Jones kept saying, "being nervous is good. Being nervous means you want to do a good job. If you don't feel nervous, then you're not alive."

It's also interesting watching the Olympics and how many of the athletes talk about being very nervous, but how the nerves sharpen them. They heighten your senses and make you more alert.

In a lot of ways, to actually operate at the peak of your abilities, you have to be nervous and you have to embrace it, and channel it into what you are doing. A lot of what God's called us to do is outside our comfort zones. The work he's got for us requires bravery and courage. The key is embracing the nerves and embracing the challenging, rather than running away and living a fearful life.

"I remember the answer I received when I once said to my venerable grandfather, 'I never have to preach, but that I feel terribly sick, literally sick, I mean, so that I might as well be crossing the Channel', and I asked the dear old man whether he thought I should ever get over that feeling. His answer was, 'Your power will be gone if you do.'"

Charles H. Spurgeon, The Soul Winner, p73-74.

First Sunday Preach

My first preach on a Sunday morning at Kings...

Assurance_of_Salvation.pdf

'Assurance of Salvation' and 'Conscious Change' from Kings Church Eastbourne on Vimeo.

Fusion: Purpose & Discomfort

Here's a talk I did at Authentic back in July. Did a dodgy recording of it as well. Always painful listening to yourself, but hey, one must get over oneself.

Fusion_Purpose_Discomfort.pdf

Authentic: Inch By Inch Growth from Sam Arnold on Vimeo.

Courage

I really enjoyed Jez Field's preach last Sunday on courage. Courage is only courage when you're afraid, fearful or nervous about something. But you embrace the situation and press on through it.

One line that jumped out at me:

"Courage is fear that has said it's prayers"

George Muller on Faith and Giving

From The Autobiography of George Muller:

"A brother with small earnings may ask, "Should I also give? My earnings are already so small that my family can barely make ends meet."
     My reply is, "have you ever considered that the very reason that your earnings remain so small may be because you spend everything on yourself? If God gave you more, you would only increase your own comfort instead of looking to see who is sick or who has no work at all that you might help them."
p195

The child of God must be willing to be a channel through which God's abundant blessings flow. The channel is narrow and shallow at first, yet some waters of God's bounty can pass through. If we cheerfully yield ourselves to this purpose, the channel becomes wider and deeper, allowing more of the bounty of God to pass through. We cannot limit the extent to which God may use us as instruments in communicating blessing if we are willing to yield ourselves to him and are careful to give Him all the glory."
p196

"May 26, 1851. The Christian should never worry about tomorrow or give sparingly because of a possible future need. Only the present moment is ours to serve the Lord, and tomorrow may never come."
p212

"The natural mind is prone to reason when we ought to believe, to be at work when we ought to be quiet, or to go our own way when we ought to steadily walk in God's ways. [ ... ] But each time we work a deliverance of our own, we find it more difficult to trust in God. At last we give way entirely to our natural reasoning, and unbelief prevails."
p220

George Muller on Stewardship

"The child of God has been bought with the precious blood of the Lord Jesus. All that he possesses—his bodily strength, his mental strength, his ability of every kind, his trade or business, and his property—all belong to God. It is written, "Ye are not your own. For ye are bought with a price" (1 Corinthians 6:19-20).

The proceeds of our calling are not our own in the sense of having freedom to spend them on the gratification of our pride or our love of pleasure. We have to stand before our Lord and Master as His stewards to seek His will concerning how He will have us use the proceeds of our calling."

p193, The Autobiography of George Muller

Verses quoted in his book, p194-5:

"The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully."
2 Cor 9:6

"One gives freely, yet grows all the richer; another withholds what he should give, and only suffers want. Whoever brings blessing will be enriched, and one who waters will himself be watered."
Proverbs 11:24-25

"Give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you."
Luke 6:38

The Second Thing

"But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you."
Matt 6:33

I've been reading the Autobiography of George Muller and in it he highlights two things regarding the verse above: pursuing the Kingdom of God and pursuing holiness. I don't know why, but I've always missed the second point. I've just had a real blind spot for it. But it's a really key factor in doing God's work here on Earth, a real motivator in the pursuit of holiness, and a promise for experiencing material provision as you go. Here's what George Muller said in his book:

"The great business which the disciple of the Lord Jesus has to be concerned about is to seek the Kingdom of God. I believe this means to seek the external and internal prosperity of the Church. If we seek to win souls for the Lord Jesus, we are seeking the external prosperity of the Kingdom of God. If we help our fellow-members in the Body grow in grace and truth or care for them in any way, we are seeking the internal prosperity of God.

In connection with this, we also have to seek His righteousness. This means to seek to be more and more like God—to seek to be inwardly conformed to the mind of God. If these two things are attended to diligently, we come to that precious promise: "And all these things [that is, food, clothing, or anything else you need in this present life] shall be added unto you."

Do you make it your primary business and your first great concern to seek the Kingdom of God and His Righteousness? Are the things of God, the honour of His name, the welfare of His Church, the conversion of sinners, and the profit of your own soul, your chief aim? Or does your business, your family, or your own temporal concerns primarily occupy your attention? Remember that the world will pass away, but the things of God will endure forever. I never knew a child of God who acted according to the above passage for whom the Lord did not fulfill His promise, "All these things shall be added unto you."

P191-2, The Autobiography of George Muller

Skilful Discipline

Over the last two and a half years I've managed to shed about two stone in weight and keep it off. Quite a beneficial exercise from a health and fitness point of view, but it was also really interesting as a lesson in discipline.

In many areas of life discipline seems to be one of the key ingredients for effectiveness and success. It's not the only thing you need, but it's massively important. If you want to persevere in daily prayer and bible reading, be good at your job, be a good husband, run a business or excel in an area of ministry, a lot of it does just come down to discipline. Which is in itself quite a skill.

Here are a few of my current observations on the nature of effective discipline:

1. You have to set yourself a goal. Long-term, mid-term and short-term help spur you on and track your progress. In particular, having daily and weekly goals really help you drive and achieve what you're aiming for overall. If you just have the big long-term vision without breaking it down into smaller steps, you don't notice your progress quite so much and tend to get easily discouraged. You get sort of lost in the journey there.

2. You have to really go for it. The end goal is something you have to really want. Anything you set out to achieve is likely to be quite difficult and challenging. Desire, passion and zeal are tools in your pocket that you have to have. Otherwise the discipline becomes cold, hard, bitter and lifeless, and you'll inevitably give up. The thing you're fighting for should be a source of joy. The joy and satisfaction you gain from being successful in your fight needs to outweigh the struggles and trials you face on the way.

3. You have to experiment, problem-solve and persevere. The initial methods you employ in your goal are going to need refining and perfecting. They might not be very effective at all to begin with. But you have to try for a period, then look back and analyse what did and didn't work. If you can figure out why something worked or why something failed, you can then take that information a create a more effective method. You repeat the process over and over until you home-in on something that really works for you. It's quite a time-consuming process, but one which can lead to long-term effectiveness. The hardest part is getting the momentum in the early phase without giving up. If you can persevere at the beginning, you're in good stead for long-term success.

4. I think the final lesson I've learnt thus far is that overall consistency is more effective than 'peaks and troughs'. For example, it's better to hit consistently at 80% capacity than attempt short bursts at the limit of what you can achieve. If you set out to run a marathon, you don't sprint out of the blocks like you're running the 100 metres. You'll knacker yourself out and collapse in a heap before the race has really begun. Instead, you have to pace yourself at a lower level which you can maintain. Your initial short term goals should be very achievable to ease you into the flow of things, like a good warm up. Then, as things progress and you acclimatise to the challenge, you can gradually increase the intensity.

Comfortable Vs Useful

Listening to Tim Keller 'Real Security and the Call of God' (available in his free sermons podcast), one really interesting point was the strong correlation between being useful and being uncomfortable. Usually a position which makes you useful is also one which makes you uncomfortable. If you prioritise comfort and security, through jobs, houses, location, ministry choices and such, you often end up in a place where you're not that useful.

We Dream of Both

A line my friend Maicol said to me recently that I quite enjoyed:

"You can either have time or money, but never both."

Chapter 5: Learning to Live by Faith

I'm very much enjoying reading the autobiography of George Muller, and have just read chapter 5 where he is a church minister and decides, for several reasons, to give up his regular salary and rely on God's direct provision. The chapter reads like a diary that recounts continual answered prayer. Every time there's a need, he engages in prayer and pretty soon receives his provision one way or another. It reveals how such direct dependence, when combined with prayer, makes for a very good lesson in faith and provision. When you're on a comfortable salary, you don't see your prayers answered in quite the same way.

I think one of the reasons I find it so encouraging is that being self-employed, you don't have the comfort and security of a salary. Every time I get a job or a new client, it very definitely feels like an answer to prayer. Muller's faith levels were so high, and it's really encouraging to read. What you realise is how important it is to pray when living like this. It's so tempting to freak out at times, when money and work is low. Daily prayer really is the only solution to freaking-out, and can actually lead to a more carefree life, knowing that God's heard you and in control.

"Some may say that such a way of life leads a Christian away from the Lord and from caring about spiritual things. They say it may cause the mind to be occupied with questions like: "What shall I eat, what shall I drink, what shall I wear?" I have experienced both ways and I know that my present manner of living by trusting God for temporal things is connected with less care. Trusting the Lord for the supply of my temporal needs keeps me from anxious thoughts like: "Will my salary last and will I have enough for next month?" In this freedom I am able to say, "My Lord is not limited. He knows my present situation, and He can supply all I need." Rather than causing anxiety, living by faith in God alone keeps my heart in perfect peace."
p41-42, The Autobiography of George Muller

Muller also comments on the way such a lifestyle can help prevent backsliding:

"This way of living has often revived the work of grace in my heart when I began to grow spiritually cold. It also has brought me back again to the Lord after I had been backsliding. It is not possible to live in sin, and at the same time, by communion with God, draw down from heaven everything one needs for this life. Frequently, a fresh answer to prayer quickens my soul and fills me with great joy."
p42, The Autobiography of George Muller

"At the end of the year, we looked back and realized that all our needs had been met more abundantly than if we had received a regular salary. We are never losers from doing the will of the Lord. I have not served a hard Master, and that is what I delight to show."
p43-44, The Autobiography of George Muller

George Muller on Debt and Romans 13

"My wife and I never went into debt because we believed it to be unscriptural according to Romans 13:8, "Owe no man any thing, but to love one another." Therefore, we have no bills with our tailor, butcher or baker, but we pay for everything in cash. We would rather suffer need than contract debts. Thus, we always know how much we have, and how much we can give away. Many trials come upon the children of God on account of not acting according to Romans 13:8.
p43, The Autobiography of George Muller

"Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed. Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law."
Romans 13:7-8

The above is quite an interesting point from George Muller on debt, and his conviction on the matter really makes you think. I've heard people say that verse 7 shows the Bible doesn't prohibit borrowing, it's just that you are to pay back what you owe in the manner you agreed. So credit cards, loans, and mortgages aren't necessarily bad things as long as you stick to your repayment agreements.

But then you throw verse 8 into the mix, "Owe no one anything", which is very straightforward. It's a phrase which really seems to limit the extent to which verse 7 applies. It basically says "just don't be in debt". Debt is bondage, and throws up all sorts of difficulties.

Verse 7 refers to taxes and revenue, and even respect. It is referring to on-going expenses that are unavoidable. You should pay your taxes, your household bills, your rent and such things. They're not so much debts but normal day-to-day expenses. You only become in debt if you miss a payment and get in arrears. So paying them is actually a means to keeping out of debt.

Verse 8 seems to specifically prohibit any sort of owing that isn't necessary. And it seems really personal – "Owe no one anything". It sounds different to owing tax to the government. It seems more like a friend, a neighbour, a local business, your bank. So don't owe your mate Bob £50. Don't rack up bills on your store cards or credit cards. Avoid your overdraft like the plague. As Muller says, it's better to suffer need that suffer debts.

What seems to sit awkwardly is all that stuff in the middle. Like loans and mortgages. What's unavoidable? When your boiler breaks down and you have to borrow a load of cash off your dad? And is a mortgage more of a good investment than debt? Is a business loan justified if it provides a means to generate income and cover the expense in the long run? Hmmm… there's always grey areas where you have to discern what's good, what's absolutely necessary and what can be avoided with better financial planning.

Notes on Matthew 1-10

Personal notes written on Matthew 1-10:

Notes_on_Matthew_1-10.rtf