What causes fights and quarrels among you?  Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? (James 4:1)

The word translated Desire here comes from the same root as the word hedonism, or the pursuit of pleasure for its own sake. 

So, there’s your Greek lesson for the day…you’re welcome.

The point is, Paul is not talking about good, lofty desires here.  He’s not talking about the desire to be a better person, to end hunger, to grow closer to God and further the brotherhood of all mankind.  He’s talking about selfish, fleshly, ifitfeelsgooddoitI’minitformemememememememe desires.

Oh, those desires?  Yeah, those.

As you move through your day, take careful note of the things that cause friction between you about the folks in your world.  Are you offended by unrighteousness and ungodly ways?

Good

Does the lack of justice and love one for another grieve your heart?

Fine

Are you bugged because stupid people keep getting in your way?

Yeah…there’s your problem.

And uh, you know, mine.

Happy Wednesday, Beloved.

Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness… (James 3:18).

You know, for a long time I’ve been reading this verse wrong.

I thought it said, “Peacemakers who sow peace…”  I figured it was a, “You reap what you sow,” kind of passage.  But that’s not what it says in my Bible.  It says, “Peacemakers who sow in peace…”

So what does that mean?

Well, first of all, James is talking to those who are peacemakers, dedicating themselves to bringing peace between Man and Man as well as between Man and God.  Does that description fit you?

Something to chew on, ya?

Then, James says that they are sowing in peace.  They are not stressed.  They are not striving.  They’re just planting seeds.  I’m not a farmer, but I’ve done a little gardening, and I’ve learned a thing or two.

Thing One: There’s a lot you can do to ensure a good harvest.

Thing Two: There’s a lot you can’t.

Gardening is a lot like farming which is a lot like our spiritual lives.  You prepare the soil, plant good seed, water well, guard against weeds and critters, and trust God for the rest.  If you realize that the harvest is not on your shoulders, that God is ultimately in control of what grows, then you can be at peace, doing your best and trusting God for the outcome.

I’m not saying it’s easy…I’m just saying it is.

So, once again, it all comes back to trusting God. You can no more create spiritual fruit than you can force rutabagas to appear.

Not that you would want to.

You may have noticed that wherever I start with one of these devotions, I end up in the same place—trust God.

I guess I’m kind of a one-trick pony.

Sow in peace, Beloved.  He’s got the harvest covered.

Happy Tuesday

The wisdom that comes from above is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere (James 3:17).

I got a great new app.  It’s called “Sincerity.”  It automatically scrolls through my contacts list, picking names at random.  It then matches each name to one of a list of encouraging Scripture passages.  Once a day, it sends an uplifting message to the people in my life, letting them know that I’m thinking about them, and that I care deeply.

Except I’m not.

And I don’t.

OK, you’re right; there’s no such app.  And if there were, it would be terrible.  But, for a moment, you were thinking, “Hey…”

Weren’t you?

One of my favorite poems is called Psalm of Single-Mindedness, by Joe Bayly.  It begins like this

Lord of reality, make me real.

Not plastic

Synthetic

Pretend

Phony

An actor playing out a part

Hypocrite.

I don’t want to keep a prayer list—I want to pray…

The poem goes on from there, but you get the picture.  It has been my prayer so often that I have a copy of the poem taped to the inside cover of my Bible.

So, Beloved, are you walking into your day fueled by the knowledge of His love and the power of that love to change the lives around you…or are you just saying what you know you’re supposed to say and doing what you know you’re supposed to do?

Don’t rush past this—chew on it for a bit.

There’s no power in going through the motions.

Even if they’re good motions.

May I make a suggestion?  Pray that God would blast through your hypocrisy today.  Pray that he would rub your soul raw, that you might feel this world as he does.  Pray that God would break your heart all over again.

It will be painful, disturbing, dangerous maybe.

But…

Don’t just walk like you mean it, Beloved.

Mean it.

Happy Monday

The wisdom that comes from above is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial… (James 3:17).

God doesn’t play favorites among his children. 

I do.

I’m a teacher.  I should treat every student the same, with complete impartiality. And I try. I have technology that allows me to read my student’s work anonymously, so I’m not biased as I grade.

That doesn’t mean I don’t have favorites. And it doesn’t mean that, from time to time, my favorites don’t get a little extra consideration.

Hmm…I oughta do something about that.  Pray for me, would you?

Even if, you know, I’m not one of your favorites.

Happy Friday, Beloved.

The wisdom that comes from above is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit… (James 3:17).

You can tell a tree by the fruit it produces.

That’s a pretty simple metaphor.  You find it all through the Bible.

And it makes sense.

If you are walking in the wisdom of God, you will do things that reflect God’s character.  You will be merciful, because the God you follow is merciful.  You will walk in grace and strength and purity because these are qualities of the One you serve.  Conversely, if you walk in the wisdom of this world, you will bear the fruit of self-centeredness, greed, arrogance, and folly.  Because that’s what this world is about.

You see where I’m going, here?

If you want to want to judge a tree, look at its fruit.

If you want to judge a heart…

It’s Thursday, Beloved.

Be a good tree.

The wisdom that comes from above is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive… (James 3:17).

Submissive?

Why submissive?  That makes me feel so weak. Who in their right mind would ever —

Your attitude should be that of Christ Jesus:

Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.  And, being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross!

Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above all names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2:6-11).

…Oh…

Walk in submission, Beloved.

You’ll be in good company.

The wisdom that comes from above is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate… (James 3:17).

What does James mean, that wisdom should be considerate?  Well, try this.

Do nothing out of selfish ambition, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.  Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others (Philippians 2:3-4).

The wisdom of this world says, “Look out for yourself.”

The wisdom of God says, “Look out for the other guy.”

Without Christ, taking care of yourself is a full-time job.  Who’s got time and energy to think about others?  Besides, you’ve gotta look out for Number One, because if you don’t, who will?

But you are not without Christ.

You are in Christ, and he is in you.

And he is Number One.

In Christ, you are strong—it does not weaken you to put others first.

In Christ, you are safe—it does not endanger you to put others first.

In Christ, you are complete—it does not diminish you to put others first.

So…do it.

Happy Tuesday, Beloved. 

The wisdom that comes from above is first of all pure; then peace-loving… (James 3:17). 

Do you love peace?

Hold on.  Before you respond with, “Of course I do!” ask yourself a few questions.  Do you ever pick an intellectual fight?  Do you ever snipe at someone—you know, taking that little shot that makes you look smart and them foolish?  Do you ever make the oh-so-slightly-gossipy comment designed to bring down someone who irks/annoys/offends you?

If the answer to any of the above is yes…

As I may have mentioned in the past, people sometimes bug me.  When they do, I have known myself to act in the ways I just mentioned, trying to win whatever imaginary battle I’m engaged in.  When I do that, I’m not looking to bring peace—not between them and me…not between them and God.  I’m looking to win.

But I lose.  Every time.

Beloved, we are men and women of God in a broken and fallen world.  It is our mission to seek and save, not to search and destroy.

I’ve gotta admit, this is a tough one for me.  I get real satisfaction out of dinging someone who has hurt me.  It makes me feel strong; it makes me feel smart; it makes me feel better…

But then, it’s not supposed to be about me…is it?

Walk in love today.  Walk in peace.

Happy Monday, Beloved

The wisdom that comes from above is first of all pure… (James 3:17).

Wisdom that isn’t clean…

isn’t flowing from righteousness…

isn’t honoring to God…

isn’t wisdom.

Happy Friday, Beloved

With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness.  Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing.  My brothers, this should not be.  Can both fresh and saltwater flow from the same spring?   (James 3:9-11).

We’ve all seen it.

We’ve all done it.

We know exactly what James is talking about.  It is a symptom of the identity crisis we all face.  We belong to Christ, yet the world has its grip on us.  In the midst of the struggles of life, and surrounded by the deception of our enemy, we forget who we are.

So, let me take a moment this morning to remind you…

You are a child of the King of the Universe.  You are the one he thought of before time began.  You are the one he created with his hands, his heart, his breath.  You are the one that he left his throne for.  You are the one that he died for.  You are the one that he rose for.  You are the one he will return for.  You are the one he will spend eternity with.

You are his Beloved.

And so am I.

So…let’s act like it today.  

Happy Thursday, Beloved