Daily Reflections on Jn. 10:11-18 (Aliens)

To this day my oldest daughter is freaked out by E.T.. She sleeps with a light on in her closet when she's home. When she was a kid, all you had to say was, "phone home," and she'd be in a panic. A lot of people are fascinated by UFO's and aliens. There've been tons of TV shows, docu-dramas and movies suggesting the presence/existence of aliens on or visiting our planet. And if you've ever been to Roswell, NM, you know the town makes a living off of alien life.

In fact, some have suggested that v.16 of our text is a reference to life on other planets. "Sheep not of this pen that I must bring," according to some, means life elsewhere in the universe or solar system. Quite frankly, I think that's a BIG time stretch. That's making the text mean something out of context or say something Jesus didn't.

Jesus had been teaching Jewish people who considered themselves "God's Chosen People." They translated "chosen" as God's "ONLY" people. Even in the early years of the church, some erroneously taught/proclaimed/insisted that one had to become a Jew before he/she could become a Christian. When Jesus was talking about sheep not of this pen, He was refering to people like me, a non-Jewish sinner. Jesus was saying what He said in John 3:16, that he loved all the world, all persons, and was laying down His life for all people.

I think there's a tendency among the religious elite or even plain ol' church folk to center only on church folk and church. It's almost like a spiritual arrogance. We're the chosen people now, we're God's favorites, He's only concerned about our relationship with Him. Take another look, a closer look. Didn't Jesus also tell a parable about abandoning the 99 sheep in the fold to go look for the ONE outside the fold? Jesus said that He came to seek and save the lost, to gather all who will come to Him. He's as concerned for those who didn't grow up in the church, who've strayed from God and the church.

Unfortunately many pastors, church leaders, church members (refered to as "hirelings" in this passage) run from the ravenous wolves of this world to protect ourselves. We isolate ourselves in our church groups and church schools or home schools so that the evil of the world stays out. We circle the wagons and never venture out. But because of Jesus' love, He faced/faces the dangerous wolves head on to collect as many sheep as He can before they are devoured. He didn't wait until they wandered into the fold. He laid down down His life for them while they were among the wolves.

God, help me lose my fear of the aliens, the strangers, the outsiders and realize I was once one of those people. Give me the strength, courage and protection to face the ravenous wolves so that I might be a part of gathering your sheep not of your pen. David learned to do battle with the lion and the bear with only a sling shot, while tending his father's sheep. Later that gave him the confidence to battle with and defeat Goliath with only that same little sling shot (and your power). God, thanks for rescuing me. And thanks for leaving your light on in my closet just for me.

Daily Reflections on Judges 7:19-25 (Trumpets)

It'd been a long day and longer evening. The meeting that night had been arduous. The cool, gray, misty conditions only added to the craving for some restful slumber. As my exhausted Sr. Pastor arrived home that evening he draped his top coat over the corner of his bedroom door, slipped into his pj's and crawled into bed. Later the night he was awakened by a loud noise. As he peered around the darkened room without the aid of his glasses, he saw the back of an intruder leaving his bedroom in a top coat. He leaped from his bed to attack the intruder. BANG! The cut, so prominently displayed on his forehead the next day, was from hitting the corner of his bedroom door. He had attempted to tackle his own coat hanging right where he'd left it. The loud noise? Turned out to be a clasp of thunder.

Ever awakened from a deep sleep startled or not known where you were? Takes a minute to get oriented. That's the scene in the valley of Jezreel as Gideon and his 300 men broke their clay jars that concealed their lit torches, blew their trumpets and began shouting their victory cheer. Awakened by the sounds of battle echoing across the hills, 120,000 enemy troops slew each other while the remaining 15,000 fled in fear. The interesting thing, Gideon and his measley 300 men never had to raise a sword. All they did was to shine their lights, blow their intruments and shout praise and glory to God.

God isn't without humor in all this. When the Angel of the Lord came to find Gideon, Gideon was cowering in a wine press terrified of his enemies. The Angel of the Lord addressed Gideon at that moment as "mighty warrior." Now that's funny! The rest of us would have called him what he was, "chicken." But that's the point of the story. God takes inept men and puts them up against insurmountable odds and then hands them the victory.

Gideon's victory came not from his abilities, ingenuity, resources, determination or anything else. It came from the hand of God that was unleashed when Gideon and his friends obeyed God and praised God. Wouldn't it be great if all you had to do when you faced an overwhelming, impossible problem was follow God's lead and sing praise in shouts of adoration. Makes me want to break out my guitar right now.

God, I know my obedience to you is the key to personal victory. I don't understand why I don't surrender more of my earthly battles to you. Trusting you and giving you praise in the heat of battle isn't easy. Keep a song of praise on my lips as I go through this day. I give you my life and praise you for the victory.

Daily Reflections on 1 Cor. 15:57-58 (Struggling)

"Oh victory in Jesus...." I loved that song growing up. It was fun to sing. I love the idea of being a winner. "And I repented of my sin and won the victory." Well, if I won the victory, how come I still face all these battles? Why is life so hard? What happened to, "come to Jesus and everything will good in your life?" Cause it seem I'm struggling just as hard if not harder than before I accepted Christ. Seems like the "abundant life" I got in Christ was abundant challenges and trials.

After reading through Paul's misadventures in the faith, including beatings, stonings, imprisonments, harassment, etc. somehow my idea of victory in Jesus has changed. If Paul can talk about victory in Christ after enduring all that, there must be something deeper. Understanding what "victory in Jesus" means involves a wider perspective. It implies we're in a spiritual battle that's bigger than us.

Every day of my life I'm engaged in the battle whether I know it or not. Some days the fighting is more intense than others but it's there nonetheless. Paul assures us that no matter what we face in life that if we will stand firm in the power of Christ and His resurrection we will win in the end. Nothing I do for Christ and His Kingdom will go unrewarded in eternity. In fact, the only things that have lasting value are the things we do for Christ and His Kingdom.

The battle requires all of our being. You can't go half-heartedly into battle and expect to win. It means giving everything, heart, soul, mind and strength. "When the trumpet of the Lord shall sound and time will be no more, and the morning breaks eternal bright and fair, when the saints of earth shall gather over on the other shore, when the roll is called up yonder I'll be there." Victorious Christian living means engaging in life here and now with the assurance of victory for eternity.

God, some days it's really hard to stay focused on your victory. Some days I just want to give up or just stay in bed. Some days, I'm just really complacent and other days totally oblivious. Help me to live each day by your power. Give me the confidence and assurance to face each challenge and trial and opportunity. Thanks for plunging me to victory beneath your cleansing flood.