I’ll just say it. Her house scared me.

Jeff and I had volunteered to help Hope pack (not her real name). She was downsizing from her 3-bedroom house where she’d raised her family to a small condo in Tennessee where she’d live alone.

But something stood in the way:
her tons of stuff.

In the living room we stepped over clothes, empty boxes, frames, etc., to see the mattress she’d pulled to the floor. Her bedroom was no longer habitable because all the piles, so she’d been sleeping here instead.

I was overwhelmed. I walked to the son’s bedroom, who’d moved out months ago, thinking this room would be easier for me to pack. It wasn’t. His suits, his school notes, his collections were still crammed in every available space.

Jeff brought me a box and said, “Don’t think; just fill.”

We asked Hope about donations. Could we bag up outgrown clothes and donate them to a thrift store or to Manna House?

But Hope said no. She wasn’t opposed to giving them away (she had a big heart, I could tell), but she wanted it to be personal. She wanted to see faces of those who could use them before she’d let go. Until then, she’d keep them to herself, not risking their misuse from others.

I understand that. It’s hard for me to let go of my stuff, too. What if I’ll want it later? What if my kids might sometimes need it? Or my grandkids?

Until I picture a face of someone who needs it now.

I imagine an Hispanic mother sifting through the grocery carts of clothes at Manna House on Wednesday night, picking up the jacket I put there. I can see a needy man asking for a shirt to wear to a new job, and giving him one of Jeff’s donations.

Jesus saw the faces.

So he poured himself, the Spirit of Logos, into flesh, into something that could be seen, felt, heard. And for 33 years he wore it well.

But then took it off.

He moved out of his flesh into ours.

He’s willed his feet, his hands, his words to us to wear for him. He sees our faces, imagines our future actions, purposes our giving in his name, even knowing we’ll misuse the gift or forget to use it altogether at times.

Now is our turn.

Because the Word is still flesh.

We’re to touch with it, talk through it, go to others in it. This flesh, it’s for showing up in. To be worn well until it’s worn out.

Back at Hope’s, I finally gave up packing and just listened to her instead. She had a story behind every item she was hoarding and she needed someone to hear it. I kept her in the kitchen so Jeff could pack elsewhere without interruptions.

When we left her house a few hours later, I could see little difference. Yes, there were now more boxes taped and labeled, but there was so much more to go. It looked hopeless.

I later heard Hope got moved. She’d rented storage buildings to house her extras—Christmas decorations, coffee mugs, musical instruments, novels, boots. All in boxes. Not being used. Not being fleshed out.

The Word became flesh to be worn.

Put him on. Live him out. Wear him well.

* * *

How can you wear his flesh this Christmas? Share in the comments.

revised from the archives

We still have three more months.

I’m not one of those people who has their Christmas shopping done by September. Alas. I’d love to be.

But I’m never quite ready to think about it this early.

There’s an order to my Christmas shopping:

• identify who to buy for,
• determine what they’d like,
• buy the gift,
• wrap the gift, and
• give the gift.

I usually get hung up at step 2. It takes me until December to get over the hump enough to move forward again.

Yet there’s something about Christmas I am ready for, at any time of the year. It’s a candlelight Christmas service at church. We attend one each December at a neighboring church as part of our annual Christmas tradition.

Lighting the candles is the most moving part for me.

There’s an order to it, too.

• First, we receive the unlit candles.
• Second, someone brings the fire, and lights his neighbor’s candle from his own.
• Third, that person passes the flame to their neighbor, who passes it to their neighbor, until it’s finally my turn too.
• And then I get to pass the flame to my neighbor.

In the end, we all have lit small candles with little flames, but it creates much light. We raise our candles high and climax in singing “Silent Night.”

It’s a beautiful process. It stirs my soul.

Jesus manifests himself to me in a similar order as well.

“This life was revealed to us. We have seen it, and we testify about it. We are reporting to you about this eternal life that was in the presence of the Father and was revealed to us.”
1 John 1:2

• First, Jesus reveals his love.
• I need to pay attention to see it.
• If so, I receive it.
• Then I have love to spread round to others.

In that order.

Granted, sometimes I get lazy and try to flip the order. I try to tell about something I know little about. Or show love before I’ve received love. Or I simply drop out after the first or second step, and never end up sharing this authentic life with another person.

So as I focus on 1 John 1:2 this week, I know Jesus will start the process by giving his love; I can count on that. My part is to notice how he becomes visible each day. In the seeing, I can then collect a bounty of love to share with someone else.

Just like the fire on the candles I light at Christmas, I want to feel the heat of Jesus’s presence. I want to smell the smoke. I want to notice the movement. I want to see by his light.

And then I want light up someone else with this love, too.

Share your thoughts in the comments.

Who can you share a light with this week? Get your candle lit, then pass it along. Share your thoughts in the comments.

I’m sharing at these blog parties

“It is Christ himself, not the Bible, who is the true word of God. The Bible, read in the right spirit and with the guidance of good teachers, will bring us to him.”
– C. S. Lewis

Give Thanks, Not Worship

I grew up on Sword Drills and Bible Bowls. I could quickly turn to any text called out, Old or New Testament, as quick as lightning. I knew Bible trivia to answer any question thrown into the ring for competition. I had notebook after notebook full of Bible verses I’d written from Sunday morning sermons.

The people in my denomination were known as “walking Bibles.” We were people of the book.  We thought we had figured out the Bible. At least I thought so. 

But did I know Jesus? Was I prioritizing loving God and loving others, the first and second great commandments according to Jesus’s words in the Bible (Matthew 22:36-40)? 

I’m thankful for the rigorous education I got on the Bible. It taught me the bones of the Bible, which continues to prove valuable to me.

I still read the Bible. I still study the Bible. I still memorize passages of the Bible.

I give thanks for the Bible.

But I don’t want to worship the Bible. I don’t want to be a bibliolater (one who makes an idol of the Bible, placing it as equal with God).

Heart for the Living Word

Perhaps I did qualify as a practicing bibliolater in those days. I concentrated more on the written words than the Living Word. 

That was then. It was what I knew. 

But this is now. My heart belongs to the Living Word, not the written word.

“I did then what I knew how to do. Now that I know better, I do better.” (Thanks, Maya Angelou). 

I still tremendously value the written words from God, don’t get me wrong. I learned and continue to learn about and from Jesus through the written words (and also through experiences with him, in conversations with you, in the testimonies of believers throughout the ages, etc.). I’ll finish up the 2-year Bible Reading Plan again on Friday (even though it took me longer than 2 years again).

But I don’t worship the messenger. My delight is in who the message is about.

“You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.”
John 5:39-40

Even the Bible Says So

Perhaps it sounds as if I’m just nitpicking words. But I’m just trying to prioritize my values.

When I give you my word, I give you my truth, my promise, my reputation. When God gives us his word, he does the same but amplified: he gives us Jesus.

We read it in the Bible itself: Jesus is the Word.

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.”
John 1:1-3

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”
John 1:14

I appreciate how Bradley Jersak says it,

“I’ve met the Word of God, and he’s far more than a book.”

Is the Word of God a what or a who? My answer is a who.

It’s Jesus.

8 Quotes from A More Christlike Word

For more explanations, research, and scriptures, I recommend a fantastic new book I just finished by Bradley Jersak, A More Christlike Word: Reading Scripture the Emmaus Way. He goes into detail on these issues (and dozens more).

You might not agree with everything Jersak says. That’s okay. I offer my usual caveat for this book as I do others:

You don’t have to agree with everything to get value from some.

Here are 8 excerpts from Jersak’s book. See what you think.

1. A BEARD

“The Word of God is Jesus Christ. I believe that the Word of God is inspired, infallible, and inerrant. And when he was about eighteen years old, he grew a beard.”

2. THE LIVING VOICE

“Christ gets the final word, and the Scriptures testify to his authority. I relate to Christ as God’s Word and to the Bible as one (and not the only) venue where I can hear the living Voice.”

3. HEAR THE FATHER

“It’s possible to spend a lifetime studying the Bible without once hearing the Father or knowing the Word.”

4. ORIENT YOURSELF

“We might say the proper orientation for entering Scripture is love for God, humility before God, and openness to God.”

5. RIGHT HAND OF GOD

“We see this subversion [of bibliolatry] when the Bible is elevated to the right hand of the Father and honored with the title “Word of God”—the name that belongs to Jesus Christ alone.”

6. READ FOR GOSPEL

“Do we read our own biases into the text? YES. Should we? NO. But we should and must read the gospel into the text AND from the text, or we risk reducing our Bible to the same dead letter the Pharisees read so fruitlessly.”

7. STUDY HOW TO STUDY

“Studying the Scriptures includes studying how to study the Scriptures.”

8. OUR STORY IS . . . 

“[The cross of Christ] reveals the gracious heart of the Father who has always been, is now, and will always be perfectly revealed in Jesus. And that, my friends, is our Story.”

Share your thoughts in the comments.

Do you have a complicated history with the Bible too? Share in the comments.

My thanks to Speakeasy for the
review copy of A More Christlike Word

Packaging can be hard to tear off. When we buy something new, we expect to be able to open it without much effort. But sometimes it requires scissors or a knife. Or if we disobey our mother’s advice, our teeth.

But other times, we let the plastic languish on the item. We don’t unwrap it. We keep it pristine on a shelf, as new as the day we bought it.

Have we kept Jesus all wrapped up, too?

Take the Packaging Off Jesus

For many of us who were born into a family of believers, our origin story with Jesus may look the same. We were toted to church from infancy, never missed a Sunday or Wednesday service, could quote the books of the Bible by 3rd grade (or earlier).

But when we really came to know Jesus, our stories will vary. They’ll be as unique as we are.

Some came to know Jesus first as Savior. Others as Friend. Others as Teacher.

In her new book Freeing Jesus, author and historian Diana Butler Bass describes 6 ways of freeing Jesus, of undoing his packaging, of letting him out of the box.

They include discovering Jesus as:

1. Friend
2. Teacher
3. Savior
4. Lord
5. Way
6. Presence

Bass organizes this book brilliantly to tell her own spiritual autobiography.

But the book isn’t just about her. It’s mainly about Jesus. And about us and Jesus.

As Bass explains, it’s not a theological memoir. It’s a memoir theology. The focus is on theology; the memoir is just there to give it structure.

What is your spiritual autobiography? How and when did you take the wrapper off of Jesus? Which role of Jesus did you begin with, and where are you now?

There are no right or wrong answers. There is no divine sequence. Jesus is all things at all times. We’re just more in tune with Jesus in different ways at different times.

6 Ways to Experience Jesus

Here are quotes from Bass relating to six sides of Jesus that become visible as we free him from the packaging. See which ones relate most to you.

1. JESUS AS FRIEND

“The story of the New Testament is that the risk of friendship is the risk that frees us from fear and reshapes our lives—it is better to go together than to go alone. Jesus befriends us, opening our hearts to genuine love and the capacity to forgive each other, welcome all, and act justly in the world.”

2. JESUS AS TEACHER

“Although Christians call Jesus by many names, those who knew him best mostly called him ‘teacher.’ Of the ninety or so times Jesus is addressed directly in the New Testament, roughly sixty refer to him as ‘teacher,’ ‘rabbi,’ ‘great one,’ or ‘master’ (as in the British sense of ‘schoolmaster’). . . .

“Jesus, who was complete love, the man for others, taught us to go and be likewise. He did not teach rules. He taught that love ruled. He lived what he taught.”

3. JESUS AS SAVIOR

“‘Savior’ may well be the most ubiquitous term that Christians use to describe Jesus. Yet, oddly enough, ‘Savior’ appears only twice in the gospels to describe Jesus. . . .

“At-one-ment was the reason the authorities did away with Jesus. No empire can stand if the people it oppresses figure out that reconciliation, love, liberation, and oneness hold more power than the sword.”

4. JESUS AS LORD

“I had not brought Jesus to anyone. Instead, my host had brought Jesus to me as he welcomed me and invited my heart to be cleansed along with the kitchen. There was something of me that got saved that day, not the other way around.”

5. JESUS AS THE WAY

“In the mystical poetry of John, Jesus uses these terms to explain how he embodies a way of being in this world so close to the heart of God that God can be known in and through Jesus. . . .

“Being a Christian is about finding or getting found by Jesus.”

6. JESUS AS PRESENCE

“Jesus as mystery is, indeed, the Christian faith’s greatest spiritual enigma. A human being who is fully God? That is what Christianity proclaims—that beyond our wildest imaginings, the ever-creating Love of the cosmos made its way into our small, hurting world, living and dying with us and for us, and promises never, never, never to leave us alone. Love is in the world, and inside of us, dwelling with us even as we dwell in it. I cannot explain one bit of that.”

Let Jesus Move and Breathe

Bass explains there are multiple other ways we experience Jesus, too: as Word, Wisdom, Sustenance, etc.

Each way, and each person’s experience, is valuable, in both shaping their own life as well as kingdom life.

“Our frame is so narrow, and Jesus’s is so wide. If only we knew all the Jesuses who have been hidden from view, all the Christs never heard. Thankfully, more voices count now—the experiences of many are arising to bring every Jesus to light the world.”

Bass addresses COVID-19 in the conclusion of her book.

She writes,

“Jesus did not leave us to suffer alone. COVID-19 forced Jesus out of the cathedral into the world, reminding Christians that church is not a building.”

Many of us can attest to this. We are thankful that Jesus has never been confined to a building or an institution.

Nor does he want to be packaged tightly in plastic wrap, sitting on a shelf, never to be opened.

Wherever we go, Jesus wants to be unwrapped and experienced as friend, teacher, Savior, Lord, way, and presence.

Let’s take the wrapper off Jesus. And leave it off. He wants to move and breathe in us.

Who is Jesus to you? Which of these 6 ways have you encountered Jesus the most: Jesus as friend, teacher, Savior, Lord, way, or presence?

Share your thoughts in the comments.

For more about Freeing Jesus, listen to the March 29 interview with Diana Butler Bass on the “Things Not Seen” podcast.

My thanks to NetGalley and HarperOne
for the review copy of Freeing Jesus

Who Are You With?

Sometimes it’s who we’re with that matters more than where we are or what we’re doing.

If you’ve had to shelter at home the past two months, hopefully you’ve enjoyed the company of those around you (most of the time anyway!).

But there is one whose company we’re always in. And it’s always good. Even when we’re unaware of his presence.

Our Featured Post

Paris Renae wrote a beautiful post last week entitled, “I’m With Him.”

She reminds us that even when we yell, think bad thoughts, are jealous, etc., God has us covered. No condemnation. Just forgiveness.

Why? Because we’re with him, with Jesus.

Read it all here. 

Thanks for sharing, Paris Renae! Here’s a button for your blog.

1. Share 1 or 2 of your most recent CHRISTIAN LIVING posts. (No DIY, crafts, recipes, or inappropriate articles.) All links are randomly sorted.

2. Comment on 1 or 2 other links. Grace & Truth linkup encourages community.   

3. Every host features one entry from the previous week. To be featured, include this button or link back here on your post (mandatory to be featured, but not to participate).

We encourage you to follow our hosts on their blogs or social media.

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Have you enjoyed you enjoy the company you’ve been quarantining with? Please share your thoughts in the comments. 

Rickey Henderson is considered one of the most exciting players in baseball (he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2009).

And it’s not because he played it safe.

What did Rickey do that we can learn from?

How can we learn to leave first base behind and run to second?

And why should we?

Read it all here

* * *

Will you join me at Do Not Depart for our #OnceforAll series? We’re walking our way through Hebrews 10.

Click through to today’s post: Run to Second—You’re Safe.

]]> https://lisanotes.com/run-from-first-to-second/feed/ 0 https://lisanotes.com/dont-just-read-the-story/ https://lisanotes.com/dont-just-read-the-story/#comments Mon, 17 Jun 2019 10:00:52 +0000 https://www.lisanotes.com/?p=17671 Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. Mark 4:36 (NIV) As she reads Mark 4:36-19, I… ]]>

Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him.
Mark 4:36 (NIV)

As she reads Mark 4:36-19, I listen intently. At first, the first word lingers: “Leaving…” Jesus is leaving the crowd behind.

She reads the passage again.
I move with her this time. With Jesus.

I feel the wind, the cold air blowing on the disciples, as they leave safety behind, heading into a storm, one not of their own making.

I shiver.

Where is Jesus? Asleep? Of all things. In the back of the boat.

Anger arises. Doesn’t he know—or worse—doesn’t he care? They are in danger! Their very lives hang on the mercy of wind and water.

Or on Jesus.

Jesus. Don’t you care? I’ve left the crowds for you. Am I in danger now? Are you really sleeping?

I’ve heard the story before. So many times. I know what happens next.

But I listen again. A third reading. This time takes me beyond. It’s no longer just a story of historical facts, of Jesus’ commanding power over nature.

Now it’s an invitation.
To me from him.
I take it personally.

The winds and the waves may splash, soaking me in an angry torrent. But is there a safer place to be than traveling with Jesus?

Even when I’m not sure where we’re going.
Even when I think he’s sleeping.
He’s still in control.
Of me.

Peace, O soul. Be still.

I shiver again, this time in awe at his supremacy, appreciating the authority behind his words, imagining what they meant to his followers on that journey, knowing what they mean to this follower on mine.

Oh, the grace. Oh, the freedom.

• If Jesus is with me, I’ll leave behind my comfort.
• If Jesus is with me, no tempest can shake my grip.
• If Jesus is with me, calling peace, I’ll be still and receive.

I yield to his command.

My soul settles into the quiet, the stillness, on this peaceful side of leaving.Regardless of my new destination, my passage is secure—I’m journeying in the boat with Jesus.

I’ll stay the course.

Instead of rereading the words of the story that changed lives then—“Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”—and changes lives now, she invites us to talk of them. To keep the conversation going between Father and child, between brothers and sisters.

I pray for her, my new friend. Another new friend prays for me. He whispers words in silence for my journey of leaving, yet traveling in safety with Jesus, for staying the course.

In such stillness, there is peace.

I am still.
He is my peace.

* * *

The Bible story is an invitation. Don’t just read it. Take it personally. Keep the conversation going.

Listening to his stories still move us. What story has taught you anew lately?

revised from the archives

How do you know Jesus loves you?

It’s one thing to believe a fact. It’s another thing to experience it.

• We think we know someone…until we live with them.
• We think we know how to parent…until we have a child.
• We think we know the love of Jesus…until we experience it for ourselves.

Maybe we know in theory that Jesus loves us. But do we understand HOW to receive his love?

Here are 12 ways we can let Jesus love us.

Read all 12 ways here

* * *

I’m writing today at Do Not Depart. Will you join me there for “12 Ways to Let Jesus Love You“?

As kids, ours mamas told us, “Never look directly at the sun! You’ll go blind!”

And they were right, of course. If we kill our retina cells, they don’t come back. So we avoid long glares at the sun.

But what about the Son? Do we avoid looking directly at him, too?

Unfortunately, instead of focusing on Jesus, we often focus instead on our church or the culture or our ministries.

But can that lead to blind spots, too?

Read the rest here

* * *

This week we’re talking about centering on Jesus. Will you join me there?

All month at Do Not Depart we’re studying Psalm 19, Beautiful World, Perfect Word.

Does it really matter to my everyday life if Jesus is a God or not?

• If he’s NOT, it changes everything.

• But if he IS, that changes everything too. Not just for later, but also for now.

Read why here . . .

* * *

Our series this month at Do Not Depart is “Who is Jesus?” Read more posts here.