Wednesday's Word...Rhythm (Part 4 of 4)

This is part four of a four part series called Rhythm. If you haven't read them, you can click on part 1 / part 2 / part 3)


Rhythm...

God created people to be in relationship with each other. This is not an earth-shattering truth. We've looked at Eden and the rhythm that existed there. The Bible says that God made Eve because it was "not good for man to be alone." I think it was more than just about Adam wanting a pretty girl walking around naked. It's more than just the need to be able to make more humans. God made Eve because He knew that all people need relationship.

We weren't created for just any relationship. A tick can have a relationship with a dog. That's not the kind of relationship we need. We need rhythm with others. Right rhythm means that we need to be in right relationships. When our relationships are out of whack, our rhythm with those people is messed up and that spills over into our relationship with God (are you beginning to see how all of these--God, others, and self--are closely tied together?).

You can't say that you have a great relationship with God if you loathe someone at work. Hating people and having enemies are the opposite of having a right relationship with God. These two ways of living are incompatible. 

So, we find "nice" ways of handling this. We find "acceptable" levels of disdain. We avoid that person, talk about him or her when they're not around or vent to our close friends about how much we secretly really do "hate" them.

Jesus says, "you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.'" (Matthew 5:21, NIV)

Jesus reached back into the Law (10 Commandments), to the ancestors of the people those laws were written to and says: "Y'all remember that one?" He's about to give a new interpretation of that law altogether!

“‘But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, ‘”Raca,” [worthless] is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, “You fool!” will be in danger of the fire of hell’” (Matthew 5:22 NIV).

See what Jesus just did there? Jesus teaches that murder is bad, but that there are other ways to murder someone. If you hate that person...murder. If you've treated them wrong, if there is friction between you and someone else, then you have a big problem. He continues:

“If you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift” (Matthew 5:23-24 NIV).

Does this seem radical to you? That means if you are coming to worship and you don't like that man or woman or have belittled this person or refuse to give grace to that person over there--you might as well not lift your hands and sing the songs. God basically says, "I'm not going to hear you out until you make that right!"

To Jesus, our relational, emotional, and spiritual lives are all connected--in the same way musical instruments come together to play a song.

When you are out of rhythm with others it affects more than just the two involved. A fight between you and your wife affects how you treat other people. (I think you know what I'm talking about.) Ultimately, though, it affects our relationship with God. Our relationships aren't just indicators of our relationship with God, they are mirrors of our relationship with ourselves. 

I think, then, that you can begin to see why rhythm is such a big deal to Jesus. It isn't just about the other person. It's about you and God. It's about you and you. It's about the rhythm of your life being interrupted. 

Side note: Some of us have been on the receiving end of being belittled and broken by someone else’s words. The things people have said or done to you, how they made you feel--that hurt is very real. Some of you feel it daily. I don’t want to discount that pain, but what those people said or did had nothing to do with who you are. They made you feel weak, but you’re not. The only way you could really be weak is to lash out at them, returning cruelty with cruelty. But to be strong, return kindness for cruelty. See beyond your own pain and see the pain of your “enemy.” 

Today, you might need to go to someone and plead for their forgiveness. Some of us might need to grant forgiveness. 

To be in rhythm with God, we have to be in rhythm with one another. This is how it is supposed to be. God wants you to be in rhythm with Him, getting in rhythm with those around us is a step towards that goal.

Wednesday's Word...Rhythm (Part 3 of 4)

This is part three of a four part series called Rhythm. If you haven't read them, you can click on part 1 or part 2)


Rhythm...

Everyone has times of insecurity. I'm not terribly athletic. I can't count the number of times I heard from the guys in high school, "If I were your size, I'd be unstoppable...I'd be able to bench press 250 lbs, or I'd dunk the ball easy!" One of my first memories of feelings of insecurity was in 4^th grade, a kid named Chip called me Dumbo. I never knew that I had big ears until that moment, and what he said hurt me and caused me to be very self-conscious about my ears for a number of years. We have all had moments of insecurity.

Since we've been talking about rhythm, we could all probably say that we've been out of rhythm with ourselves at some [read: many] point in our lives. Insecurity, anger, guilt, frustration, and abandonment all throw us out of the rhythm we were created for. How do we respond? What can get us back in rhythm?

The foundation of everything in your life is...well...you! You are the one involved in everything you do. You can't take you out of the equation. We are created to be in rhythm--rhythm with God, others, and ourselves. The problem is that when we aren't in rhythm with ourselves, we can't be in rhythm with God or others.

What does rhythm with God, others, and ourselves mean? It means that we are to love--show love, demonstrate love, and express love. Rhythm is displayed in love.

Here's what it comes down to: If we don't care what's done to us, how can we care about what is done to others? If we don't understand that we are worthy of love, how can we genuinely love others?

When we're not happy with who we are, we are afraid to let others see the real us and confirm our worst fear--that we really are unlovable. The Bible tells of an encounter Jesus had with a woman near a well. She was there hiding and avoiding others because she had secrets.

“[Jesus] left Judea and returned to Galilee. He had to go through Samaria on the way. Eventually he came to the Samaritan village of Sychar, near the field that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there; and Jesus, tired from the long walk, sat wearily beside the well about noontime. Soon a Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, ‘Please give me a drink.’ He was alone at the time because his disciples had gone into the village to buy some food.
The woman was surprised, for Jews refuse to have anything to do with Samaritans. She said to Jesus, ‘You are a Jew, and I am a Samaritan woman. Why are you asking me for a drink?’
Jesus replied, ‘If you only knew the gift God has for you and who you are speaking to, you would ask me, and I would give you living water.’
‘But sir, you don’t have a rope or a bucket,’ she said, ‘and this well is very deep. Where would you get this living water? And besides, do you think you’re greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us this well? How can you offer better water than he and his sons and his animals enjoyed?’ “Jesus replied, ‘Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again. But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.’

‘Please, sir,’ the woman said, ‘give me this water! Then I’ll never be thirsty again, and I won’t have to come here to get water’” (John 4:3-15 NLT).

You can imagine this is a very confusing moment for this woman. This man enters the scene and offers eternal life. Most of us think that eternal life is something that happens when we die. Jesus sees it differently, eternal life begins now! Jesus is letter her know that there is more to life than how she is living now, out of rhythm with God. There's something "off" in her life and Jesus know's it. This woman is wearing a mask.

“‘Please, sir,’ the woman said, ‘give me some of that water! Then I’ll never be thirsty again, and I won’t have to come here to haul water.’
‘Go and get your husband,’ Jesus told her.
‘I don’t have a husband,’ the woman replied.
Jesus said, ‘You’re right! You don’t have a husband for you have had five husbands, and you aren’t even married to the man you’re living with now’ “ (John 4:15-18 NLT).

Jesus says, “Life isn’t working for you, is it? Let Me offer you another way of living, the way you were created to live.” He is not simply implying that she repeat some words after Him and everything will be okay when she dies. Life after death is just a portion of what He is offering her. He is implying she needs rhythm with herself now--something she can only have when she is in rhythm with God, herself and others.

We are great, just like this woman and Adam and Eve, at hiding our baggage. You know what I'm talking about. You look great on the outside, but it's just glitter. You live life, fingers crossed, hoping that no one knows what's going on inside.

Sin got this woman out of rhythm with God, but she was out of rhythm with herself as well. She determined that "out of rhythm" was the only option she had. That led to falling out of rhythm with herself. 

To be in rhythm with yourself is to love yourself. When you don't love yourself, you naturally begin not to love God. We can try to hide from others, but you know you can't hide from God. Everything you've said, done, or thought -- He sees and doesn't run away.

If the rhythm with you and God is off, maybe it's because you don't like you. Maybe it's not the person you are mad at, maybe it's not with your job, spouse, kids, or boss; maybe the issue is...well...you?

How can you begin to love yourself?

Wednesday's Word...Rhythm (Part 2 of 4)

This is week 2 of 4 of this blog. (Click here if you missed last week)


Rhythm...

When I'm working on a lesson or sermon I like to listen to Pandora radio. I tune it to the Film Scores channel and let it block out the noise of the office, traffic, and anything else that would serve to distract me. It's not standard "white noise" but it does the trick.

White noise is simply noise that fills the air. It has no real meaning. I think, for many of us, there are many things about our faith that have become "white noise." We've heard it all and seen it all. 

We know God is big, but we live like He's so small and we've got Him all figured out. We know God knows everything, but we live like He doesn't really care.

What if we saw God for who He is? Who he really is? What if we went beyond all the "white noise," the stuff we've heard before and were actually surprised by God? What if the God you thought you knew so well showed you something new about Himself?

Everyone was created with a sense of wonder. I see it everyday in my children. We want something to amaze us. But, somewhere along the way, we settle for another song. 

“The serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, ‘Did God really say, “You must not eat from any tree in the garden”?’
The woman said to the serpent, ‘We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, “You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.”
‘You will not surely die,’ the serpent said to the woman” (Genesis 3:1-4 NIV). 

 A big part of being in rhythm with God is living in wonder of God. It's how we are designed. When something else captures our wonder and focus, we lose rhythm with God. Adam and Eve became focused with something other than God. But it wasn't just that, they also began to lose their sense of wonder about who God is.

“ ‘You will not surely die,’ the serpent said to the woman. ‘For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil’ ” (Genesis 3:4 NIV).


The serpent described a God who seems so "human" that He would tell Adam and Eve not to eat something because He's insecure and afraid that they will be like Him. Suddenly, they lose their wonder and rhythm with God and they don't feel as close as they once did. You probably know the story from here...

...they eat the fruit...suddenly they realize they are naked and they go hide...sin is here.

Wonder is at the center of being in rhythm with God. Wonder is when our words, affection, attention, and soul can't explain or get enough of something. When something seems too unbelievable to grasp and amazing to be true, it has captured our sense of wonder.

In our lives, we have things that steal our attention and grab our affection. Not all of them are bad or sinful things, but they have the potential to distract us from our created source of wonder, our Creator. 

Our wonder is designed by Him. When we lose it, we lose rhythm with Him.

Today, my question for you is: What has captured your wonder?

Wednesday's Word...Rhythm (Part 1 of 4)

Today I will begin a four part post, each posting on 4 consecutive Wednesday's. 


Rhythm...

I am a musician, in the loosest sense of the word. That is, I play guitar. When I first started, it was easy to play (except for the painful callouses on my fingers). I could play as fast or as slow as I needed to because I was playing by myself. Then in college, I was asked to play in a chapel praise band. Wow...different story all together. I learned quickly the importance of rhythm. Rhythm holds everything together in music. As a listener of music I never payed any attention to rhythm, that is, unless it was not present. Then it's quite noticeable. 

Rhythm is an invisible quality that holds everything together, not just music. We are created to exist in rhythm with God, with ourselves, and with others. In the beginning, the "conductor" (God) began assembling the band and putting the song together:

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. And God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness” (Genesis 1:1-4 NIV).

There was rhythm between God and humanity, between man and woman, and between man and himself. But then the song fell apart.

“When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it” (Genesis 3:6 NIV). 

Every action has consequences. Sin affects one thing; then it begins to affect another.

Our problems begin when we lose rhythm with God. We were designed to be in rhythm with Him. Sin breaks that rhythm.

Here's what's interesting (and where we will leave off for today): When Adam and Eve disobeyed in the garden, God didn't simply walk away, He went looking for them! (see Genesis 3:8-9)

We were created to be in rhythm with God, to walk in step with Him. Micah 6:8 says, "He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." 

Are you feeling like your life is just out of sync? You, my friend, might have a rhythm issue bigger than just the circumstances around you. What is we began asking the question "Is my life in rhythm with God?" before we began asking so many why's? It might put things into perspective.

(Next week we'll take a closer look at what it means to be in rhythm with God)