Tag Archives: Words

Chapter-a-Day

Diagnosis I Didn’t Ask For

1 Comment

With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be.
James 3:9-10 (NIV)

Wendy and I were on our way to worship this past Sunday morning. We were having a conversation about an individual who had made some major mistakes in leadership which led to many painful and widespread consequences.

“They were worthless at the job,” I said as I drove.

“Let’s say they were ‘incapable’ at the job,” Wendy said softly but directly. “No one is ‘worthless.’”

She was so, so correct.

“I’m trying to be more careful about the words I use when speaking of others,” she then added.

I immediately apologized and accepted my error. I need to be more careful with my words.

This episode in the car with Wendy happened amidst the final editing process of my upcoming book. In the process of editing my original manuscript, my editor pointed out a similarly painful observation. She noticed that I at times used harsh language when I wrote about certain individuals I had encountered along my career. She felt it was important enough that she point it out to me.

“I know your heart, Tom,” she said to me. “And, this is not the person you want to be. I knew you’d want me to be honest about what I’m seeing.”

Ugh. I have a blind spot.

Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner.

Some mornings as I read and meditate on the chapter I have to dig deep to mine what God has for me in the text. Other mornings, it simply jumps off the page and slaps me across the face.

That was this morning.

Most of today’s chapter James focuses on the power of the tongue. It’s such a small part of our physical whole yet it has disproportionate affect. James likens it to the rudder of a ship as it can steer me in the wrong direction. He likens it to a spark that can unleash a wildfire of conflict and controversy I didn’t intend.

As I meditated on it this morning I likened it to a living cardiogram — my words revealing symptoms of heart trouble. Harsh, rash words about others are indicators that bitterness, anger, and contempt have been building up inside like plaque in my spiritual arteries.

And so, I find myself sitting here in the quiet knowing there are some things I need to do.

First, I need to take some time for introspection. I need to ask God to help me take an honest look inside at where some ugly thoughts and feelings about others have been building up inside me.

Next comes confession. As I discover where that build-up of bitterness is hiding and with whom I’m harboring ill-will, I need to use my tongue to honestly speak it out loud to God and members of my inner-circle with whom I know I am safe and am surrounded by love and grace.

Finally, I need to be accountable. A diabetic constantly monitors their blood-sugar to watch for signs of a problem. I need to better monitor my words, especially when I’m speaking about others. Once again, my inner-circle are my best source for that assistance.

I have discovered a problem.
I have been given a prescription.
Now — by grace — I must take the medicine.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Promotional graphic for Tom Vander Well's Wayfarer blog and podcast, featuring icons of various podcast platforms with a photo of Tom Vander Well.
These chapter-a-day blog posts are also available via podcast on all major podcast platforms including Apple, Google, and Spotify! Simply go to your podcast platform and search for “Wayfarer Tom Vander Well.” If it’s not on your platform, please let me know!
An orange square button featuring an open book icon in white.
Chapter-a-Day

Words’ Worth

1 Comment

Keep reminding God’s people of these things. Warn them before God against quarreling about words; it is of no value, and only ruins those who listen.

Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it will become more and more ungodly.

Don’t have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels.
2 Timothy 2:14,16, 23 (NIV)

Wendy and I peruse the news each morning over coffee and breakfast. Along with reading the articles, Wendy will often peruse the comments from readers that follow the online article. This regularly leads to her sharing with me some of the more ridiculous comments people make. In rare cases, the comments become a rabbit hole we fall into.

Not once have I found it profitable to fall down that rabbit hole.

I love that I live in place where free speech is a foundational right. I have also learned along life’s road that wherever you find freedom you will also find indulgence. Freedom always comes with responsibility.

Paul writes today’s chapter from the antithesis of freedom. He is chained in a Roman dungeon. I find it fascinating therefore his final instructions to Timothy return three times to being careful with his investment of words. Paul reminds Timothy to avoid unprofitable “quarreling,” “chatter,” and “foolish and stupid arguments.” Paul tells Timothy “they are of no value.”

The further I progress on this earthly journey the more I find myself discerning what I really care about, what I find worthwhile, and those things that are worth the investment of my time, energy, and resources.

Words have value. They take time. They are an investment.

I don’t want to waste my words. I don’t want to waste my time on words that have little or no value for me or anyone else.

Thanks for investing in reading/listening to these words.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Promotional graphic for Tom Vander Well's Wayfarer blog and podcast, featuring icons of various podcast platforms with a photo of Tom Vander Well.
These chapter-a-day blog posts are also available via podcast on all major podcast platforms including Apple, Google, and Spotify! Simply go to your podcast platform and search for “Wayfarer Tom Vander Well.” If it’s not on your platform, please let me know!
An orange icon featuring an open book with a white outline, representing reading or literature.
Chapter-a-Day

Recitation and Relationships

1 Comment

Recitation and Relationships (CaD Matt 18) – Wayfarer

“This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”
Matthew 18:35 (NIV)

Every week our local gathering of Jesus’ followers says The Lord’s Prayer together. As we do, Wendy and I tend to paraphrase the traditional language a bit on our own. I think it’s funny and fascinating that the institutional church chooses to update the wording of certain things (music, translation of the Bible, the wording of the Apostle’s Creed, and etc.) but not others. Please don’t read what I’m not writing. I don’t think there’s anything particularly wrong or right. It’s the kind of ecclesiastical hair-splitting that have, for too long, gotten people’s undies in a bunch and caused more harm than good.

I see both sides of traditional words and phrasing for well-worn passages. Sometimes the traditional, yet out-of-date, wording is like a comfy old sweatshirt that wraps you in the warmth and comfort of something familiar which has been with you and seen you through long stretches of life’s journey. On the other hand, I have often found that as I press into new and unfamiliar stretches of life’s journey, I am challenged to address new and extraordinary circumstances that require me to find new layers of wisdom in traditional thoughts and meditations.

And, as the Bard famously said, “there’s the rub.”

I know, personally, that when I recite the same words over and over and over again, they begin to lose their potency. I’m just going through the motions. So, I tend to do what I was taught as I studied acting. You take the memorized line of a script and play with it, emphasizing a different word or phrase with increased inflection with each subsequent recitation. As I am fond of saying, metaphors are layered with meaning, and often as I emphasize and change my inflection with different words in the oft repeated sentence, it makes me consider different ways of considering the same words or phrases.

One of the phrases of The Lord’s Prayer that has taken on increased meaning for me as I have practiced this is: “and forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us.” This is a request with a stated acknowledgement of reciprocal relational responsibility. I’m asking God to forgive my sins, while acknowledging that I can only expect to be forgiven to the degree I am willing to forgive those who have wronged me.

In today’s chapter, Jesus unpacks this uncomfortable spiritual principle in a parable. A king has a servant who owes him a thousand dollars he has never been able to pay. Upon the pleading of the indebted servant, the king mercifully forgives the debt. This same man exits the kings chamber and runs into a fellow servant who owes him ten bucks. He goes postal on the dude, demanding the ten-spot without even considering the weight of debt from which he’d just been graciously and mercifully freed. The king finds out about the hypocrisy, hauls the ungrateful servant into his court and had him tortured until he paid every cent he was owed.

Now comes the intense and uncomfortable part. Jesus follows up this parable by stating quite directly: “This is how my heavenly Father will treat you, Tom, unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”

Ouch. Hello, sobering Monday morning meditation. When I recited those famous words with my fellow followers yesterday, there’s potent spiritual punch lurking behind the well-worn words. Forgive me God, just as I have forgiven those who’ve sinned against me. Wait a minute. Maybe there are some heart and relationship matters I should have addressed before I showed up in my Sunday best to go through the religious motions.

In the quiet this morning, I find myself entering another work week thinking about my relational realities in light of my religious recitations. If there’s a disconnect between the two, then the latter was an impotent ritual. That’s the thing about a cozy old sweatshirt. If it becomes threadbare and filled with holes, it has lost its ability to accomplish the original purpose.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

These chapter-a-day blog posts are also available via podcast on all major podcast platforms including Apple, Google, and Spotify! Simply go to your podcast platform and search for “Wayfarer Tom Vander Well.” If it’s not on your platform, please let me know!
Chapter-a-Day

Profound Simplicity

2 Comments

Profound Simplicity (CaD Eph 5) – Wayfarer

Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving.
Ephesians 5:4 (NIV)

I have a reminder set for later this morning to get the turkey out of the freezer so it can thaw before Thanksgiving Day on Thursday. A few weeks ago, Wendy and I weren’t sure what we were doing for Thanksgiving this year. We’d talked about a small, quiet affair with a couple of other family members. That suddenly swelled to a total of fourteen who will be gathering at our house for the feast. We are grateful for the opportunity to host members of both our families. It’s going to be wonderful day of love and feasting.

Thanksgiving was, no doubt, on my heart and mind in the quiet this morning as I read today’s chapter. Paul provides for the disciples of Jesus in Ephesus stark contrasts between how those in the world live and how disciples of Jesus should conduct themselves in life and relationships. Among the contrasts he provides is the difference between the “obscene,” “foolish,” and “coarse” conversations and “thanksgiving.” I found it interesting that the Greek word translated “thanksgiving” is eucharistia which is the root of the word eucharist that many followers of Jesus use to name the bread and cup of the sacrament of Communion.

In yesterday’s post/podcast I talked about how I invest my budget of words daily. Paul is, quite obviously, continuing this theme and providing contrasting examples. If I was “mic’d up” like players and coaches in the NFL and then all of my words for a day were run through AI to summarize and describe all of things I’d spoken yesterday, what would the result be? What adjectives would describe the flow of words that came out of my mouth? “Foolish,” “empty,” “coarse,” “obscene,” “negative,” “critical,” “mean,” “gossip?” Would the adjectives “grateful,” “gracious,” “kind,” or “encouraging” even make it on the list?

As I meditate on these things in the quiet this morning, my mind conjured up another contrast. This chapter-a-day journey just finished slogging through the 48 chapters of Ezekiel. To be honest, it’s a tough trek in which finding daily spiritual nuggets requires study, history, context, and deeper than average meditation. This quick trek through Ephesians has been almost a mental shock for me by contrast. An entire post could spring from almost every sentence Paul writes, and the truths he addresses are often profound in their simplicity.

Profound in its simplicity is what I’m taking from the chapters this week. Consider my words. Invest them wisely. Use them well. And there is perhaps no more worthy and useful purpose for my words than to express thanks to God and to others for all that they mean to me. And, dear reader, that includes you. I’m thankful for your companionship on this chapter-a-day journey – even you quiet lurkers out there I don’t even know. I’m going to begin Thanksgiving early this year, by practicing words of gratitude and thanksgiving today and tomorrow. You’re welcome to join me.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Chapter-a-Day

Word Budget

Leave a comment

Word Budget (CaD Eph 4) – Wayfarer

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
Ephesians 4:29 (NIV)

Yesterday, like most Sundays, Wendy and I were the last ones out of the Auditorium after worship. We were talking to people. It was more than just casual conversation. One friend is having surgery tomorrow, and it’s a rather complicated procedure to remove a cancerous mass. Another friend is having tests this week to identify what could be a different form of cancer. Another friend is struggling with a stubborn, aging parent. These are good conversations. We’re sharing the things of life with one another, encouraging one another, and bearing one another’s burdens.

Eventually the crowd thinned out and it was just Wendy and me with another couple. Our conversation continued as we walked out of the Auditorium. It continued on the steps outside the building.

I remember thinking to myself, “One of us needs to call an end to this conversation, or we’ll be standing here all afternoon!”

Talk about a good problem to have!

It is said that the average person speaks 16,000 words a day. I am going to say something today, but do I actually have something to say that’s worthwhile? The further I get in the journey, the more I find myself mindful of how I invest my words. I have a daily budget of words that I’m going to spend. How am I going to spend them? Will they be a worthy investment or will I waste them? Am I going to say things that are worthwhile and contribute to relationships and goodness to others? Are my conversations about the things of Life and Spirit or are they wasted on trivial nothingness? Are my words positive and encouraging or negative and critical?

In today’s chapter, Paul urges Jesus’ disciples in Ephesus to give consideration to the words that are coming out of their mouths. He wants them to invest their words so there is a return on investment. He wants them to speak the words others need to hear. He expects a beneficial outcome for the receiver of the words.

I’m reminded in the quiet this morning that Jesus said, “Everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken.” (Matthew 12:36) Funny, I’ve never seen that one plastered on trinkets at the Christian bookstore. Come to think of it, I’ve never heard a message preached on it either. I might have to do that when I’m given the opportunity to give a message someday. It seems to me that it would be a worthwhile investment of my words.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Chapter-a-Day

Compelled

Leave a comment

Compelled (CaD Acts 4) – Wayfarer

“As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.”
Acts 4:20 (NIV)

I gave a message yesterday to our local gathering of Jesus’ followers. As I got up to deliver the message I realized that the page with the message I had prepared and all my notes was still back in my home office sitting on my desk. Believe it or not, I didn’t freak out. The truth is that I have forgotten my message at home before. I just started speaking. The words just came to me. It’s always been this way.

In today’s chapter, Peter and John are arrested and thrown into the Temple jail overnight. The next morning they are brought before the Temple rulers. Luke is careful to document the names of the leaders who were there because for his contemporary readers, it was a who’s who of the Jewish authorities.

Annas was like the godfather of the Temple and its lucrative financial operations. The Temple wasn’t just a religious system. It was a business, which is why Jesus got righteously angry, turned over the tables of the moneychangers, and declared that Annas and his mob had turned the Temple “into a den of thieves.” Annas had been the high priest, but the Romans deposed him. So, Annas did what the head of all mob families do. He made sure a string of his sons and sons-in-law held the office of high priest, but everyone knew that it was Annas pulling the strings. On the night Jesus was arrested, the first place they took Him was Annas’ house.

Luke also takes care to note that the Temple leaders who arrested Peter and John were from a religious Jewish sect known as Sadducees. The Sadducees didn’t believe in resurrection or an afterlife, and it was Peter and John’s claims that Jesus was resurrected and they had witnessed it that made the Temple leaders want to shut them up, and fast.

The following day, when Peter and John are brought before the same men who conspired to have Jesus crucified, the two former fishermen from Galilee boldly and articulately repeat their message. Jesus, whom they had killed a few weeks before, had been risen from the dead. The religious leaders were in a bind. Peter and John had clearly performed a miracle, healing a well-known, local man that everyone knew had been lame his whole life. Peter and John were unschooled blue-collar deplorables from Galilee, but when they opened their mouths, they spoke with boldness and authority, reciting scriptures like they’d been to the finest rabbinical schools. So, they did the only thing they could do. They tried to bully Peter and John with threats and commanded them to keep their mouths shut.

Peter and John respond by making it clear that they can’t shut up. What they heard, saw, and experienced with Jesus compels them to speak. That’s just what they’re going to do.

As I read Peter and John’s message in the previous chapter, and their defense in today’s chapter, I could not help but remember Jesus’ words to them: “When you are brought before synagogues, rulers and authorities, do not worry about how you will defend yourselves or what you will say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say.”

In the quiet this morning, I think back to when I was a young teenager and I surrendered my life to Jesus. In an experience I can’t ever forget, God told me I would proclaim His Word. From that moment on, I found that I could just start talking about Jesus, and the words would come. I have multiple people have asked me how I write these posts every weekday. It’s the same way. Some mornings I stare at a blank screen with no earthly idea what to write. I start typing, and the words come. And, what Peter and John said to the bullies who tried to shut them up in today’s chapter resonates with me. I can’t stop. I’m compelled by what I have seen, heard, and experienced following Jesus.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Chapter-a-Day

Young Eli’s Approach

1 Comment

Young Eli's Approach (CaD Job 33) – Wayfarer

“But you have said in my hearing—
    I heard the very words—
Job 33:8 (NIV)

In my vocational career, I do a lot of coaching and training in the subjects of customer communication and customer service. The most requested topic, by far, is how to handle angry and escalated customers. I always begin addressing the topic with a simple truth that must be understood: There is no magic formula or simple ingredient that works every time. That said, there are a handful of tactics that can and do help in many situations.

One of the most simple and basic of tactics is to conversationally address the angry customer by name. The use of names in a conversation implies that there is a relationship. When relationships break down, it is common for people to stop addressing one another by name, referring to one another by pronouns or epithets instead. It is easier for some people to rant and and curse to a nameless, disembodied voice over the phone. When names are used then a relationship is implied and the nameless, disembodied voice becomes an actual person to the angry customer on the other end of the phone.

Today’s chapter is the opening of what will be five straight chapters of Eli the younger’s wisdom for Job. He gives Job free reign to respond at the end of today’s chapter. However, Job has stated his closing argument, and he refuses to respond. Young Eli takes this as permission to give Job an earful.

There is something different in the way young Eli addresses Job. Unlike Eli the elder, Bill, and Z, the young man actually speaks directly to Job, addressing him by name. The elder three never addressed Job by name, which is rather fascinating when you think about it. They are likely closer in age to Job and also likely to have experienced more of life with him. One would think that there would be more intimacy between the elder friends and the suffering Job. Perhaps their arm’s length approach hints at their fear of getting too close to Job, as if his suffering might be contagious.

Another subtle difference in the way young Eli approaches Job is his refusal to directly accuse Job of wrongdoing. The elder three friends were convinced that some heinous and hidden sin must be present for God to punish Job and make him suffer. Instead, Eli establishes a pattern in which he addresses and refutes Job’s own words:

“But you have said in my hearing…” (verse 8)
“But I tell you…” (verse 12)

In this, I heard echoes of Jesus’ message on the mountain when He repeatedly used a similar device:

“You have heard that it was said…” (Matthew 5:21)
“But I tell you…” (Matthew 5:22)

What is fascinating as young Eli launches into his discourse is that he claims to have heard Job say things that Job never said. For example, Eli claims that Job said he was “pure and free from sin.” Quite the opposite, Job readily admitted to being a sinner (7:21; 13:26). Job’s claim is that if he did anything to deserve the suffering he is experiencing then he’d like God to tell him what it is.

Young Eli goes on to refute Job’s notion that God is silent. He argues that God can and does speak in various ways. In this the young man is not wrong. He is, however, using a blunt instrument (God is never silent) to address what is a rather surgically precise argument on Job’s part (God has not addressed my specific complaint).

As I sat and meditated on young Eli’s self-proclaimed many words of wisdom, I found myself also contemplating Job’s silence which I find to reflect a very different kind of wisdom. Proverbs 10:19 says, “When there are many words, sin is unavoidable, but the one who controls his lips is wise.” In the modern day world of social media, there is no lack of words from an infinite number of voices. Increasingly, when I feel compelled to add my words onto the pile, I choose Job’s path of wisdom and simply keep silent.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Chapter-a-Day

Small Things, Big Consequences

Leave a comment

Small Things, Big Consequences (CaD Jos 16) – Wayfarer

[The tribe of Ephraim] did not dislodge the Canaanites living in Gezer; to this day the Canaanites live among the people of Ephraim but are required to do forced labor.
Joshua 16:10 (NIV)

Over the next couple of days, I’m going to be working with a client and teaching them strategies for handling escalated customers over the phone. It’s the number one training and coaching request that our team gets. There are no magic pills when it comes to handling an angry customer, but there certainly are strategies that work in many, if not most, situations. Using the right voice tone, and choosing the right words to communicate both empathy and ownership are important. They can turn a potentially explosive situation around.

Beyond business, I have found this same principle to be true in everyday relationships. Early in our marriage, Wendy and I established a couple of small habits without ever talking about them or discussing them. We just did it, and over time I believe it has helped fill one another’s love tank.

One of these tiny habits is the simple and repetitive expression of gratitude for the things one another does as part of the division of labor in our household. Every time Wendy spends the day doing laundry, I always thank her. Likewise, she always expresses her gratitude to me for taking care of the lawn and landscaping. A little gratitude goes a long way.

The other tiny habit is expressing a positive willingness when either of us asks the other for assistance, help, or a favor. It’s amazing how powerful the phrase “I’d be happy to do that for you” is when it is both said and exemplified. It subtly says, “You’re not a burden. I love you, and I’m happy to assist with whatever you need from me.”

Small things, but I believe they have had a huge positive impact on our relationship.

In today’s chapter, the tribe of Ephraim receives their allotment of the Promised Land. As with yesterday’s chapter, the Family Patterns are telling. Ephraim and Manasseh were the sons of Joseph, who was his father Jacob’s favorite son and was sold into slavery by his brothers. Now, 600 years later, the tribes of Joseph are still getting preferential treatment.

So far, three tribes have received their Promised Land inheritance and at the end of each property’s legal description, there is a report as to whether the tribe was able to conquer the remaining peoples located within their boundaries. Caleb drove the Anakites from Hebron (chapter 14), Judah was unable to dislodge the Jebusites from the fortress of Jerusalem (chapter 15), and Ephraim was unable to dislodge all of the Canaanites living in their territory in today’s chapter.

The tag regarding the Canaanites being subject to forced labor is actually a legal wording of that time. It appears in other land documents from that region in the Bronze Age. Forced labor was a common form of taxation in those days. Instead of paying money, subjects of a local or regional ruler were required to work on building projects.

While these lines about not dislodging the inhabitants of the land appear as legal footnotes of the chapter, they will actually have far-reaching, consequences that are not always positive. The tribes will be influenced by the other peoples and cultures living among them. Throughout the rest of Israel’s story, idolatry will plague the nation as the tribes adopt and worship local deities along with the Lord, breaking the first of the ten commandments given through Moses. This will have negative repercussions.

When David becomes King of Israel, he will make Jerusalem the capital city. This was, in part, because of the presence and local power of the Jebusites who still lived and thrived there. After conquering Jerusalem, David makes it the seat of his power which was essentially a political move to appease and align the Jebusites to his rule.

In the quiet this morning, I find myself pondering the reality that small things can have large, far-reaching consequences. The principle works both in the negative and the positive. A bad habit allowed to perpetuate can ultimately lead to tragic ends. Likewise, a small daily choice to express kindness and gratitude can result in a fruitful relationship.

Today, I want to be mindful of the small words of gratitude, the little acts of kindness, and simple generosities I can express to everyone with whom I interact. Simple words, gratitude, and affirmations repeatedly expressed can have huge consequences on both my attitude and in those in my circles of influence.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Chapter-a-Day

Heart and Words

1 Comment

Heart and Words (CaD Matt 12) – Wayfarer

“For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of…”
“For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”
Matthew 12:34b, 37 (NIV)

Every morning, Wendy and I sit at the kitchen island with our coffee and our blueberry-spinach smoothies. We share a quick devotional thought and a prayer for the day ahead. We then catch up on what is happening in the world. On occasion, I’ll finish reading an article and then glance at the comments that have been made by other readers below it. I don’t know why I even do this. I always regret doing so because the comments have such little worthwhile content and so much worthless vitriol. It doesn’t matter which side of the political aisle the article comes from.

I find the same to be true even among groups of supposedly like-minded individuals. Years ago I joined fan groups of my favorite teams on social media. I rarely visit them anymore. Even among people who cheer for the same team, I find the conflict and negative discourse over really trivial matters is often off-the-charts. I don’t find it worthwhile to spend my time and energy falling down that rabbit hole.

In today’s chapter, Jesus states a very simple spiritual truth that packs a punch:

Whatever is inside my heart and soul will come out of my mouth (and onto my social media posts) as words.

In the quiet this morning, I didn’t have to search for, or think hard about, what God had for me and my day from today’s chapter. I found myself thinking long and hard about Jesus’ observation: the words I speak, type, write, and use are a leading indicator of my soul’s health and content. I immediately thought of careless words I regret speaking to a friend last week. I then had two other passages that Holy Spirit brought to mind:

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.
Philippians 4:8 (NIV)

My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.
James 1:19 (NIV)

My soul operates on the basic computer principle I learned when I was in high school: garbage in, garbage out.

I head into my day with two questions I’m pondering:

What am I feeding my heart and mind?

What do my words, tweets, posts, and comments reveal about the health and condition of my soul?

Chapter-a-Day

Words and Works

1 Comment

Words and Works (CaD John 10) – Wayfarer

The Jews who were there gathered around him, saying, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.”

Jesus answered, “I did tell you, but you do not believe. The works I do in my Father’s name testify about me, but you do not believe because you are not my sheep.
John 10:24-26 (NIV)

Wendy and I have been regular readers of the Wall Street Journal forever. The New York based newspaper is one of a few newspapers to have had subscribers across the entire nation, even before the dawn of the digital age.

One of the things that we have noticed across the years is that you can take the Wall Street Journal out of New York, but you can’t take New York out of the Wall Street Journal. The content, from news to opinion to lifestyle are clearly New York City centric and cater to wealthy business professionals in Manhattan who have always been the key constituency in their subscriber base. What this means, however, is that Wendy and I often shake our heads over morning coffee here in small town Iowa. The Wall Street Journal clearly doesn’t get life in fly-over country (even when they visit every four years for the Iowa caucuses) where life and business are still largely centered around agriculture and people see life differently based on a very different daily life experience.

In the same way, it’s often challenging for a 21st century reader to understand the context of a first century story-teller, but it’s not impossible. Learning the context reveals often profound understanding.

God’s base language is metaphor, and in today’s chapter Jesus uses one metaphor in two different messages He presents in the Temple in Jerusalem: the Shepherd. Shepherds and sheep were understood by all of Jesus’ listeners back in the day. Sheep were a staple in their lives for both food, clothing, and the religious system. In fact, the metaphor of the Shepherd was not new to Jesus. It’s all over the place in the ancient Psalms and the messages of the prophets in which God revealed Himself as the “Shepherd of Israel,” the religious leaders were, likewise, to “shepherd” God’s people, and the coming Messiah was prophesied to be a true Shepherd to care for God’s people. Moses was a shepherd. David was a shepherd. Shepherd is an important metaphor in the Great Story.

In Jesus’ word picture, He is both a gate by which sheep go out to pasture and return to the safety of their home, and the Shepherd who lays down His life for the sheep because they are His sheep. He is not a thief, robber, or rustler who seeks to steal sheep for their own selfish aims.

John then moves the narrative to another time Jesus was teaching in the Temple in Jerusalem during another national religious festival in which he again uses the metaphor of Shepherd and sheep. There is still tremendous debate and division over Jesus true identity. He is asked plainly: “Are you the Messiah, or not?”

Jesus responds with an interesting statement: “I told you already, not with words, but by my actions, my works, and my signs. You didn’t get it because you’re not my sheep.”

Actions reveal identity.

Jesus says basically the same thing as He did in the previous chapter, but with a different metaphor:

I Am the Light of the World:
– There are blind who I make see
– There are those who see who I cause to go blind

I Am the Good Shepherd:
– My sheep know my voice and follow
– Those who don’t know my voice don’t follow; Not my sheep

What really stuck out to me, however, was that His true identity was revealed by words or claims but by works and deeds. It is the same thing Jesus told The Twelve later: They’ll know you’re mine, not by your claims, but by your love for one another. Jesus’ brother, James, would pick up on this in his letter to the exiled followers of Jesus scattered across the Roman empire: “Faith by itself, with no action, is dead. Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds.”

In the quiet this morning, I am reminded that even when Jesus was walking the earth performing signs and wonders, there were many who remained blind and deaf to His message. Why should I think that it would be any different today? I’m also reminded that my claim to be a follower of the Good Shepherd is basically worthless. Jesus said so Himself. It is those acts of love, grace, mercy, generosity, and forgiveness that mark me as one of His sheep.

Time for this sheep to do my best to reveal my faith in action, and not just these words, on this another day of the journey.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.