Cut Hearts

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TODAY’S SPECIAL: Acts 7-8; Psalm 122

TO CHEW ON: “‘You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit; as your fathers did, so do you’ … When they heard these things they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed at him with their teeth.” Acts 7:51,54

Eloquent Stephen concluded his speech of defense to the high priest and the council by condemning them. His description of them as “stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears” certainly stirred them up, though not in a safe way. It was the last speech Stephen ever made.

A couple of things snag attention here.
1. We can be in the presence of God’s truth, as the religious Jews were, and still not be touched by it. Our unregenerate hearts readily filter out what our ears don’t want to hear.

2. If and when we are “cut” by God’s truth about us and our lives, our reaction can be negative or positive. Stephen’s speech to the council cut their hearts not to “circumcise” or alter them in the way of being marked for God’s kingdom, but to make them angry; they “gnashed at him with their teeth.” In this way they sealed their own fates—though young Saul at whose feet the stoning people laid their clothes (Acts 7:57)* later had his own heart circumcision encounter.

Let’s take seriously the fact that being in the presence of God’s truth about us isn’t enough. We still have the choice to resist the Spirit or let His words to us cut and mark us as His own.

PRAYER: Dear Father, help me to have a heart and ears that are sensitive to what Your Holy Spirit says to me. Amen.
PSALM TO PRAY: Psalm 122

* A note in my NKJV Cultural Background Study Bible comments on the stone throwers laying clothes at a Saul’s feet (Acts 7:57):

“Because the activity was physically strenuous, they could lay aside their outer garments, as was customary during exercise. … Ancient practice, however, specified not the stripping of the executioners but rather the stripping of the person being executed. Luke may ironically emphasize their stripping themselves to remind the reader who is really on trial” - Kindle Location 206,939.

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Thanks for reading! This year we are using The Bible Project "Timeless Reading Plan" to read through the Bible in 2018. If you'd like to read along in your own Bible, you can download a pdf of the reading plan HERE.

Real change is an inside job

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TODAY’S SPECIAL: Nehemiah 12-13; Psalm 52

TO CHEW ON: “Also that day they offered great sacrifices, and rejoiced, for God had made them rejoice with great joy; the women and the children also rejoiced, so that the joy of Jerusalem was heard afar off.” Nehemiah 12:43

Nehemiah completed the task he got leave from his job to do. Nehemiah 12 describes the dedication of the finished wall. It was a great celebration with  music, instruments, choirs and  sacrifices. Then Nehemiah went back to Babylon to work for Artaxerxes.

Sometime later, when Nehemiah returned to visit Jerusalem, he found, to his great dismay, that a lot of people had slipped back into their old ways.

• Some of Israel’s enemies and critics had infiltrated the temple and leadership (Nehemiah 13:7,8; 28).

• Since offerings were no longer being collected and stored for the Levites, they had to go back to farming to make a living (Nehemiah 13:10).

• People were working on the Sabbath day (Nehemiah 13:15).

• Gentile merchants were allowed into the city to set up markets on the Sabbath (Nehemiah 13:16).

• The people were again intermarrying with their idol-worshiping neighbours and forgetting or not even learning the language of Israel (Israel 13:23,24).

And so Nehemiah had to clean up again (Nehemiah 13:30,31). His zeal for obedience and holiness is a testimony of how much he feared and respected God and cared for the well-being of the people.

This passage leaves us with some thoughts to apply to our lives.
1. The rebuilt wall that was meant to set Jerusalem apart from its pagan neighbours was ineffective because the people’s hearts, from the religious and political leaders down, had not changed. Real change is effective only when it starts from inside.

2. Nehemiah’s zeal in building the wall in the first place and then his coming back and putting things right shows a respect and fear of God that we seem to have lost in our after-the-cross church era. Though we don’t fear God’s judgment as Old Testament people of faith did, God hasn’t changed. I sometimes wonder whether our casual attitude toward sin might be putting us on a more dangerous path than we realize.


PRAYER: Dear Father, change me from the inside so that my heart is to do Your will, because I love You and regard You with a realistic respect and fear. Amen.
PSALM TO PRAY: Psalm 52

MORE:  Change Me on the Inside




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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Thanks for reading! This year we are using The Bible Project "Timeless Reading Plan" to read through the Bible in 2018. If you'd like to read along in your own Bible, you can download a pdf of the reading plan HERE.

Changed

TODAY'S SPECIAL: 1 Samuel 9-12; Psalm 80


TO CHEW ON: "Then the Spirit of the Lord will come upon you, and you will prophesy with them and be turned into another man." 1 Samuel 10:6

Who of us wouldn't welcome such a transformation as happened to Saul?

The Bible speaks much of being transformed, changed, and renewed. As we study it, we discover we too can experience such a radical remake. Let's look at some other Bible passages that speak of becoming a new person (i.e. spiritual renewal) to understand what such a radical renewal involves.

It begins when we trust Christ for salvation.

• Jesus calls this event being "born again" and "born of water and the Spirit" - John 3:1-8.

• Paul speaks of being saved "through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit" - Titus 3:5.

• In another place he calls this being "in Christ" and describes it as a "new creation—old things have passed away; behold new things have come" - 2 Corinthians 5:17.

Our new spiritual baby selves need to grow.

• We do this by spending time with God - Isaiah 40:31. For us this means things like reading the Bible, reflecting on how its teachings relate to our lives, and talking to God in prayer. During this time spent with Him God transforms and renews our minds - Romans 12:2; Ephesians 4:23.

• God promises to stay involved in the process of renewal for our entire lives - Philippians 1:6; 2:13.

• All is not lost if we mess up, like David did. "Create in me a clean heart ... and renew a steadfast spirit in me," he prayed (Psalm 51:10) after repenting from adultery with Bathsheba and masterminding the murder of her husband.

Empowering for special jobs. 

• God sometimes brings about such new-person events to empower people for special jobs. That's what happened to Saul here—and to other Old Testament characters before the Holy Spirit was available to all after the day of Pentecost.

• Throughout the New Testament we see God the Spirit assigning and empowering people:

- The Holy Spirit directs the choosing of seven men to oversee the daily distribution of food - Acts 6:1-7
- The Holy Spirit sends Ananias to pray for and baptize Saul - Acts 9:10-19
- God tells the Antioch church leaders to send out Barnabas and Saul/Paul, which they do after laying hands on them and praying.

And so we see that this renewal that happened to Saul can also take place for and in us. It will probably not happen in an instant, as it did in him, but may the change in us over time, be just as dramatic.

PRAYER: Dear God, thank you for the many ways You bring about change and renewal in my life. Help me today to live in cooperation with that process. Amen.

PSALM TO PRAY: Psalm 80


MORE: The Holy Spirit invades all of life

"The Holy Spirit cannot be accepted as a guest in merely one room of the house— He invades all of it. And once I decide that my “old man” (that is, my heredity of sin) should be identified with the death of Jesus, the Holy Spirit invades me. He takes charge of everything. My part is to walk in the light and to obey all that He reveals to me."- Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest,  April 11 reading.

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Is it time for a change?

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TODAY’S SPECIAL: Genesis 29-31

TO CHEW ON: “Then the LORD said to Jacob, ‘Return to the land of your fathers and to your family, and I will be with you.’” Genesis 31:3

Here at the beginning of the year, it’s not unusual to think about changes we would like to make in the coming 12 months, or that seem inevitable by the way they insert themselves into our awareness.

The latter was Jacob’s experience.

He had lived near Laban, his father-in-law for twenty years (Genesis 31:41). It was certainly longer than his mother had anticipated (she talked about an absence of “a few days” - Genesis 27:44).  But now change was in the air. Several things alerted Jacob to it:

1. His brothers-in-law, Laban’s sons, were restive and talking about how he had stolen their father’s wealth (and thus their inheritance) - Genesis 31:1.

2. Laban no longer seemed favourable to him either - Genesis 31:2.

3. God spoke to Jacob (the Bible doesn’t say exactly how) and told him what the change was to be. He was to return home.

It’s interesting to see what changes God told other Bible characters to make.

• God spoke directly to Abram (later Abraham) telling him to leave home and and old associations for points unknown - Genesis 12:1.

• God engineered a bush fire out of which He told Moses to lead Israel out of Egyptian slavery - Exodus 3:10.

• God told Joshua to move forward - Joshua 1:2.

• God came to Gideon as the “Angel of the LORD” and told him to fight against Israel’s oppressors, the Midianites. To start that process he was to destroy his family’s idols - Judges 6:14,25.

• God gave many directives to Elijah. He told him where to find supplies (1 Kings 17:3-4,9), when it was time to come out of retirement and get back to work (1 Kings 18:1), who to anoint as ruler and prophetic successor (1 Kings 19:15-16) and what judgments to pronounce on evil King Ahab (1 Kings 21:18,19; 2 Kings 1:3).

In the New Testament

• God told Ananias to go and pray for Saul—a seemingly dangerous assignment because Saul was legendary as a persecutor of Christians - Acts 9:10-16.

• God told Peter to go to the house of Gentile Cornelius - Acts 10:19,20.

• God told the early church’s prophets and teachers who to appoint for special assignments - Acts 13:1,2.

• God told Paul and Silas to avoid certain places (Asia and Bithynia) and to go to others (Macedonia), on their missionary journey - Acts 16:6-10.

We see that God communicates directives about many things in a variety of ways. What is He whispering (or shouting) in your ear? Let’s be open and obedient to His directions for change this year.


PRAYER: Dear Father, help me to catch Your signals about the changes You are asking me to make in 2018. Amen.
 

PSALM TO PRAY: Psalm 9

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Thanks for reading! This year we are using The Bible Project "Timeless Reading Plan" to read through the Bible in 2018. If you'd like to read along in your own Bible, you can download a pdf of the reading plan HERE.

God doesn't age

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Psalm 71:1-11

TO CHEW ON: "Do not cast me off in the time of old age;
Do not forsake me when my strength fails." Psalm 71:9


The longer we live, the more famous and powerful people we see come—and go. The movers and shakers of my youth, of even 20 years ago, are either dead or vastly changed.  International leaders like Maggie Thatcher and Ronald Reagan lose their minds to dementia. Beautiful people like Liz Taylor lose physical allure to aging and disease. Most sports figures are yesterday's news after age 40. If we see current photos of many of these once-prominent people, we hardly recognize their changed and wrinkled appearance. Age ravishes them like it does us all.

The writer of today's psalm, who appears to have been a prominent person himself, is feeling the vulnerabilities of aging. He is aware of his failing strength and of how he is now a sitting duck for his enemies—probably younger, more vigorous men who, he imagines, plot ways to take his life and lie in ambush poised to pounce on him.

In this time of old age trouble he reminds himself of the rock-solid God he trusts. He calls Him a "strong refuge," and a "rock and fortress" (Psalm 71:3,7).  He recalls how long God has been there for him—a hope and trust from his youth, upholding him even from birth (Psalm 71:5,6).

What a reassurance to all of us who are also in the process of aging. (That's everybody, of course, but after a certain birthday it encroaches ever more tangibly.) As the embrace of old age tightens, changing appearance, threatening health, sucking stamina, eroding influence, and stealing friends, even spouses, let's let this psalm remind us that God isn't going anywhere. He hasn't changed and won't change. The One who was our rock, refuge, fortress, hope, and trust in youth and middle age can and will be those things for us in old age as well.

PRAYER: Dear God, thank You for Your unchangeableness. Help me to recall this about You in the face of how I and my generation are wearing out. Amen.

MORE: God's unchangeableness

"We can define the unchangeableness of God as follows: 'God is unchanging in his being, perfections, purposes, and promises, yet God does act and feel emotions and he acts and feels differently in response to different situations.' This attribute of God is called God's immutability" - Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theoology, p. 163 (quoting Louis Berkhof's Systematic Theology).

Read more about the Immutability of God on Rebecca Writes (Theological Terms).

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Change is possible

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Isaiah 43:14-28

TO CHEW ON:  "Do not remember the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold I will do a new thing, now it will spring forth; shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert."  Isaiah 43:18,19.


What “former things” is Isaiah is referring to here? He may be talking about the pattern the nations of Israel and Judah were stuck in – a cycle of turning to God, growing cold, being rebellious, committing sin, experiencing domination by heathen neighbors and then crying out to God again. Perhaps additionally there was the feeling that God’s interventions on their behalf were all in the past. Miracles had happened – yes. God had been present. But that was long ago, in a different generation. Now He felt absent.

Isaiah speaks God’s word of hope. Old behavior patterns can be broken: “Do not remember former things…” New miracles are possible: “Behold I will do a new thing…”


We also easily get stuck in ‘former things.’ Destructive patterns of behavior, like eating too much, losing our temper, worrying and a myriad more may hold us or our loved ones captive. As we drift from God, He feels ever more distant. He has been active in our lives, but it’s all in the past. The last time He seemed close and intimate was weeks, months, even years ago.

This passage assures us that change is possible. When we bring our situation to God, turn from our sin and again give Him lordship in our lives, He will do new things for us too.

PRAYER: Dear God, thank You for this message of hope. Please do a new thing my life and in the lives of my family, friends and nation. Amen.

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Practical repentance

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TODAY'S SPECIAL: Luke 3:1-18

TO CHEW ON: "And he (John) went into all the region around Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins." - Luke 3:3

By the time Luke wrote the Gospel of Luke he had made the connection between Isaiah's prophecy (what he quotes in Luke 3:4-6 from Isaiah 40:3-5) to the coming of Jesus as Messiah and the role that John the Baptist played in preparing the people for Jesus.

Luke saw John as that "voice of one crying in the wilderness." The preparation that he preached was repentance (metanoia). As we saw a few days ago, repent means to feel remorse, change one's mind, and reform.

When John's convicted hearers responded to his message with "What shall we do then?" John gave practical examples. Repentance would be evident when they…

• Turned from selfishness to generosity to the extent of sharing life's everyday stuff of food and clothes - Luke 3:11.

• Turned from using questionable business practices to being honest - Luke 3:13.

• Turned from using intimidation, bullying, and lying to practicing honest justice - Luke 3:14.

• Turned from whining about wages to being content with them - Luke 3:14.

In these weeks of the Advent season, we also prepare our hearts. As we let the Holy Spirit shine His light into their farthest corners, what do we see that we need to repent of? Perhaps we need to deal with some of the same vices John pointed out of selfishness, dishonesty, bullying and intimidation, injustice, discontentment. Or maybe it's something else—fear and anxiety, distraction, sensuousness, envy, lust…

Whatever God shows us, let's deal with it in repentance (feel remorse, change our mind, reform) as we prepare to celebrate Jesus coming to make His home within us.


PRAYER: Dear God, thank You for this clear and practical example of John the Baptist, who took repentance out of the realm of theory into real life. Please show me where I need to repent.

MORE: Second Sunday of Advent

Today is the Second Sunday of Advent. Today's liturgy begins with this collect:

Merciful God, who sent your messengers the prophets to preach repentance and prepare the way for our salvation: Give us grace to heed their warnings and forsake our sins, that we may greet with joy the coming of Jesus Christ our Redeemer; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

A hundred little repentances

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Matthew 4:12-25

TO CHEW ON: "From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, 'Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.'" Matthew 4:17


In my old Funk and Wagnall's "repent" has three meanings. I see them as three steps in one process:
1. To feel remorse or regret.
2. To change one's mind concerning past action.
3. To feel such sorrow for one's sins as to reform.

The conjunction "for" between "Repent" and "Kingdom" implies a cause-and-effect relationship between repentance and the Kingdom of Heaven. We could say it, "Repent — and this is why — because (for) the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.

Why do we need to repent?

In order not to miss it (the Kingdom of Heaven) in that by not repenting, we're walking in the wrong direction and won't encounter it.

In order to be part of and involved in it (and by repenting we're in the right relationship-to-God-and-circumstances space to do that).

The commentary writers of my Bible's article on this verse link repentance with "Reconciliation"

Our Call - Reconciliation
"...Left to our own devices we tend toward self-centredness and chaos (Jeremiah 17:9; Romans 1:21-32), but coming to God in a spirit of humble repentance opens up a way for peace and reconciliation to flow (2 Chronicles 7:14)" - Raleigh Washington / Bill McCartney, New Spirit-Filled Life Bible, p. 1295.

Though Jesus preached an initial life turnaround decision to repent, doesn't life with Him need a hundred little repentances throughout the day? Something bad happens and my first thought may be fear, or resentment or irritation or... But the Kingdom-of-Heaven-way is not these things but trust (Philippians 4:6-7). So I repent and turn from fear, resentment or irritation to trust via prayer with thanksgiving.

PRAYER: Dear God, please open my eyes to places where my life is not in flow with the Kingdom of Heaven. Please give me the courage and grace to repent, not only in remorseful thought but in Kingdom-affirming action. Amen.

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Seeing God

God questions Job - Artist unknown

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Job 39:19-40:6


TO CHEW ON: "Then Job answered the Lord and said, 'Behold I am vile; What shall I answer You? I lay my hand over my mouth.'" Job 40:3-4

Here we see a Job quite unlike the cocky self-assured man who said, "I would declare to Him the number of my steps; Like a prince I would approach Him" - Job 31:37. What made the difference? Hearing God speak and being in His presence.

This reaction of Job's made me curious about how God's presence affected others. Here is a quick survey of how God's presence affected some people in the Bible:

• For Hagar, fleeing from abusive Sarai after conceiving Ishmael by Abraham the "Angel of the Lord" was comfort and hope - Genesis 16:13.

• For Jacob, after wrestling all night with a mysterious "Man" it was a physical disability and a blessing - Genesis 32:30.

• For Aaron and Miriam it was a humbling rebuke at challenging the leadership of their brother Moses, who was intimate with God - Numbers 12:8.

• For Israel it was the reputation of God living among them, striking terror in the soldiers of the surrounding nations - Numbers 14:14. (David calls the sight of God His refuge Psalm 141:8.)

• For the elders of Israel and David it was an inexpressibly beautiful place and experience - Exodus 24:10; Psalm 27:4.

• For Manoah and his wife it was the announcement of a baby and a new responsibility of raising Israel's leader Samson - Judges 13:1-23.

• For Isaiah and Job it was a sense of unworthy sinfulness and self-loathing - Isaiah 6:5; Job 42:5 (along with our focus verses today).

Can we hope to see God face to face? Jesus said "Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God" - Matthew 5:8. One day in discussion with Jesus, Philip said, "'Lord, show us the Father and it is sufficient for us.'" Jesus replied: "'He who has seen Me has seen the Father'" - John 14:9.

What does this say to us? My sense is that, like the earlier Job, we often don't have a clue about what an awesome, fearful, holy place God's presence really is judging by how blasé and casual we are about invoking and entering it. At the same time we have a clue in that we have Jesus. We can view His life in the Bible record and see the Father. And through His gift of salvation, we can be pure in heart.

PRAYER: Dear God, I struggle to put my mind around what I read about Your encounters with us humans in the Bible. Please give me a realistic, experiential understanding and awe about who You are and what it means to be in Your presence.  Amen. 


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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Spirit of change

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Acts 3:1-21

TO CHEW ON: "Then Peter said, 'Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give to you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.' And he took him by the hand and lifted him up." Acts 3:6,7

When we read about Peter in the New Testament, it's almost as if we're reading about two different people.
The early Peter is:

• Naturally impulsive - Matthew 14:28.

• Slow to comprehend spiritual truth - Matthew 15:15,16.

• Full of contradictions - Matthew 16:16-23.

• Self-seeking - Matthew 19:27.

• Cowardly - Matthew 26:69-72.

But what a change after Pentecost. Now he has

• Wisdom to teach and preach - Acts 2:14; 3:12.

• Boldness and courage - Acts 4:13,20.

• Power and anointing for miracles - Acts 3:6,7… and tons of faith. Here he extends his hand to lift up that lame man before there's a whisper of evidence he'll be able to walk. We read in Acts 5:15 how his very presence has healing power. And when Tabitha dies, he raises her from the dead - Acts 9:40.

• Insight to break down the spiritual barriers between Jews and Gentiles - Acts 10:44.

The change in Peter's life comes about when the Holy Spirit takes over.

A sobering question to ask ourselves is, which list of Peter's characteristics describes us?

The encouraging thing is that the Spirit who changed Peter is available to indwell, possess, and change us too. Another boldly Spirit-filled apostle—Paul—reminds the Christians in Thessalonica:

"For our gospel did not come to you in words only but also in power and in the Holy Spirit…" 1 Thessalonians 1:5.

He reassures Timothy:

"For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind" - 2 Timothy 1:7.

He prays for the Ephesians—a prayer that we can pray over ourselves and others:

"…that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man" - Ephesians 3:16.

As I am in prayer about this just now, I sense the Lord reminding me—and us— that the Spirit's empowering in our lives is not to accomplish what the apostles did, but for the work and assignments He gives us: to raise that family, make those boots, manage that strata, work in that bank, pastor that church, write that book…


PRAYER: Dear God, please help me to yield myself to Your Spirit that changes, empowers, and makes me more like Jesus n my everyday 21st century life. Amen.

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Life reno

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Titus 3:1-15

TO CHEW ON: "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit." Titus 3:5

I like to watch home renovation shows on TV. I'm always amazed by the reveal, especially if the show included scenes of how the rooms looked as the work progressed.

Renovation is one meaning of the word renewing (anakainosis - #342) Paul uses to describe the work of the Holy Spirit in us — along with restoration, and "complete change for the better."

Bible writers mention renewal in other places.

• One of the most intriguing is Samuel's promise to Saul after Samuel anointed him king of Israel: "Then the Spirit of the Lord will come upon you and you will prophesy with them and be turned into another man" (1 Samuel 10:6). It seems that God's empowering of Saul for his new job included an instantaneous renovation.

• David asked God for a clean heart and renewed spirit after Nathan confronted him with the Bathsheba fiasco (Psalm 51:10).

• Renewed strength comes, Isaiah promises, by waiting on the Lord (Isaiah 40:31).

• Such renovation can involve the renewal of our minds (Romans 12:2; Ephesians 4:23) and our whole inner persons (2 Corinthians 4:16).

• The final result of this renewal will be a reveal of people who resemble Jesus: "...and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him" (Colossians 3:10).

Picture your life as a house. Does it need a renovation? Does it need to be cleared of clutter—stuff that you're hanging onto from the past like old grudges, bitter memories, unforgiveness? Does it need walls knocked out to let in more light and improve the traffic flow—walls of prejudice, perhaps, or hurt? Does it need a new coat of paint in the colours of joy, hope, peace, and love, applied as you read God's word and take it to heart? Don't let the messiness of your inner renovation discourage you. The Holy Spirit is good at renovations. The reveal will show a life that reminds people of Jesus.

PRAYER: Dear Holy Spirit, help me to cooperate with Your renovation, restoration and transformation work in my life. Amen.

MORE: House reno tips

Kelvin Browne lists and expands on "The Five Biggest Reno Mistakes" in a National Post article reprinted on hgtv.ca. His article is full of good common sense  about some of the pitfalls of house renos. His points also remind me of parallels in the spiritual realm. Can you think of more?

1. Not appreciating a house has a unique DNA and when you renovate, you must respond to it. (God doesn't make that mistake: see Psalm 139.)

2. Believing that good, big windows don't matter is a mistake. (Light: God is big on that! See John 8:12 and 2 Corinthians 4:6).

3a. You renovate too much. (I don't know if that's possible spiritually because the renovation needs to be complete: Romans 7:18).

3b. A related mistake is when renovations are uneven .... In other words, you renovate too much in one place and not enough in another. (God's renovations are always deep and thorough: Ezekiel 11:19).

4. You have no idea why you're renovating. (Spiritually, the need for renovation is painfully apparent: Romans 7:18-25)

5. Not enjoying the process of renovation. (We can enjoy the newness—even as we're still in process: 2 Corinthians 5:17).

Fruit Cycle

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Luke 19:1-10

TO CHEW ON: "So he made haste and came down and received Him joyfully." Luke 19:6

The wonderful story of Zacchaeus is unique yet typical. It is like following the life cycle of a piece of spiritual fruit in the way it illustrates the stages of someone coming to Jesus. Here are some of those stages:

1. Spiritual hunger
Zaccheus was rich and a social and religious outcast. His position as a chief tax collector meant he was doubly hated as a collaborator and enforcer with the Romans. He's the kind of person we easily depersonalize, feeling they're altogether not like us. But despite his more-than-adequate lifestyle and incorrect politics, he had spiritual longings. That's true of most people.

2. Attraction to Jesus
Jesus intrigued Zaccheus, to the point he climbed a tree to compensate for his shortness in order to see Him. Fascination with Jesus continues into our generation. I have heard and read many stories of people, even in places where Jesus is not well known and faith in Him not condoned, having a fascination with Him and encountering Him in visions and dreams.

3. Chance intersection
Jesus happened to look up and catch sight of Zaccheus. God often brings together thirsty people with the thirst-quencher sometimes in ways so seemingly coincidental we're amazed by the miraculousness of it.

4. Personal encounter
Jesus invited Himself over to Zaccheus's house. I don't know if that was socially kosher or not, but Z. sure didn't mind. He was as delighted to bring Jesus into the place he lived as Jesus was to meet him there. Jesus does that; meets us where we live.

5. Easy pickings
Zaccheus was ripe fruit. Notice how ready he was to change (vs. 8). We don't know if Jesus had to say anything to convince him that his life needed a shakeup. God had prepared his heart — as He prepares the hearts of all who come to Him.

6. Transformation
"Today salvation has come to this house," said Jesus. Salvation didn't just come to Zaccheus's life but his "house" (Oikos — his dwelling, family, descendants). We could say the same today whether the person encountering Jesus has been a gangster, an imam, a desperate housewife or cynical student.

Have you seen God operating in your life or the lives of others in these ways? I have. Being aware of these stages of spiritual fruit helps me in two ways.

• I can pray specifically for these things to be happening in the lives of people I know who have not yet met Jesus or who have turned their back on Him.

• I can be reassured that I am part of the process (as Jesus told us to be), even if I'm not the one to pick the fruit.

PRAYER: Dear God, please help me be a worker with You in introducing people to Jesus. Amen.

MORE: Another take on this story

It just happens that the day I'm writing this is the day this story is featured on Bible Drive-Thru (my kids' devotions). Read "Dinner with a Sinner."

Do your 8-12-year-olds have daily devotions? Point them to Bible Drive-Thru.