Author: Heather

Once upon a time there was a gardener.  And when spring came that gardener worked very hard and planted flowers and vegetables.  All summer the gardener played and swam and waited for God to make her garden grow. 

And in the fall the gardener went to her garden and BEHOLD the flowers were scraggly from neglect and had dried up.  The green beans had produced mightily but since no one picked them the beans had become hard and brown.  The only tomatoes that were left were rotted on the ground.  And the gardener was sorely disappointed with God.

 And the gardener complained to God that he had not cared for the garden.  She complained about the flowers-though in fact they had been quite beautiful but were now a mess due to neglect.  She complained to God about the beans-though in fact there had been plenty enough for her and the whole neighborhood had they only been picked regularly.  She complained to God about the tomatoes but the creatures of the garden, the rabbits and the ground squirrels, were full and happily.  But God was silent.

UNSEEN

Usually, if you can’t see it, it’s not there.  Unless you believe in God and then you know that there is a lot going on that you can’t see, which is, quite frankly, a little scary.  As often as we remind ourselves that God is at work in unseen ways, it seems a little iffy.  What if we could see the network that the Holy Spirit has built, the interconnections that are going on? John 3:8 Talk about six degrees of separation, I bet there isn’t even one degree of separation if we could only see as God does.  We are all connected in the supernatural realm.  How fun when we meet someone and find how connected we are.* Take my husband for instance.  40 years ago I had never heard of him though our circles of family and friends were actually overlapping.  But God had and the Spirit moved in meticulous, imperceptible ways to bring us together, all orchestrated with the perfect timing of the master conductor of the world.

This morning as I drank my coffee outside, I could see all sorts of invisible little strings, links from one thing to another.  The tiny threads had been there for days, but I had not been able to see them.  Somehow, just the way the sun was shining and the wind was blowing made them suddenly detectible.  The more I looked the more of them I found.  The links from place to place shimmered all around me, from one flower to a chair to the bush to the bird feeder to the rose.  There they were, suddenly visible where I had seen nothing yesterday.  I hate to call them cobwebs, but that is exactly what they were.  Tiny filaments tracing the path of an  insect that had jumped from the top of the umbrella down to the table and left a bit of himself in a cord to show that yes, he had been there.  Very thin, but long fibers placed from here to there, heretofore unseen though they had been there all along.  No move of the spider was left unrecorded and no space left unfilled.  A maze of invisible connections that suddenly appeared to show what had been going on all summer behind the scenes practically under my very nose but completely unbeknownst to me.

It reminded me of the way the Holy Spirit works, blowing here and there, sometimes spinning webs for purposes unknown to me now.  Other times the Spirit leaves a shimmering trail that I can only see in hindsight and if I’m very still and quiet, allowing the light of the Son and the breath of the Spirit to bring the unseen into focus.  I can see a bit of the unseen if I wait prayerfully and watch for that breeze to gently blow and expose the handiwork of God.

It reminded me of a story in 2 Chronicles 20:1-30 where King Jehoshaphat was afraid for his people because a great enemy army was gathering to attack.  2 Chron. 20:1-3 But Jehoshaphat “set his face to seek the LORD” and he proclaimed a great fast and all of the people, the parents and the children gathered.  2 Chron. 20:4-6 They remembered how God had saved them in the past.  They remembered how he promised that if they cried out to him he would hear.  They knew they were powerless and told Yahweh that all their eyes were on Him to see what he would do. 2 Chron. 20:7-12 Then the Holy Spirit spoke to them through a man of God and told them not to be afraid, because the battle was God’s and not theirs. 2 Chron. 20:13-17

The assembly of people bowed and worshipped the Lord.  Early in the morning they all went to hide in safety in the wilderness.  They believed in the Lord their God and worshipped and sang, “Give thanks to the LORD for his steadfast love endures forever.” They waited to see what God would do. 2 Chron. 20:18-21 As they sang, the LORD set an ambush against the army that had come to attack them.  God built an invisible web in which to catch their enemies!  In the confusion of battle the enemies from one country attacked the enemies from another and in the end the armies all killed each other.  And when the people of God looked out from their watchtower in the wilderness toward the site of the battle, they could see nothing but their foes lying dead on the ground, every one of them.  2 Chron. 20:22-24

Well it is one thing to hear about the mighty acts of God but can we trust that the God who acted in the day of Jehoshaphat is still acting on our behalf today?  Does he still save?

Jesus’ disciple Philip had his doubts.  He told Jesus that if Jesus would make God the Father visible to him then he could believe.  Jesus seems shocked at Philip.  Didn’t Philip know that If he had seen Jesus he had seen with God.  Jesus reminded Philip of the miracles he had done in plain sight, at least Philip should believe because of them. John 14:8-11 But then, Philip, who I think had trouble seeing the unseen, seeing the invisible strings that moved the world, heard something even more amazing.  Jesus said, “Really, truly, I’m telling you, that whoever believes in me will also do miracles like I did.  In fact, greater works then I did because I’m going to be in heaven with the Father.  Whatever you ask God in my name, I will do it so that God the Father is glorified through me.” John 14:12-14.

The promise Jesus gives us is that though the rest of the world will not be able to see him acting, we will be able to see it because Jesus will be living in us.  Those who know and believe will be able to see the movement of the Holy Spirit in the world.   John 14:15-21

Lord Jesus, help me to see the unseen in the world around me.  Help me to be caught up in your web and part of your plan as it leaves a trail from here to there.  Help me to count on your power to do the impossible that you would be glorified.

*(Six degrees of separation refers to the idea that everyone is on average approximately six steps away, by way of introduction, from any other person on Earth, so that a chain of “a friend of a friend” statements can be made, on average, to connect any two people in

Start with a PUNCH!

 “The heart of the wise makes his speech judicious and adds persuasiveness to his lips.” (Proverbs 16:23)

Our messages are meant to persuade, to transform.  Whether we are preachers, teachers, or leaders, our words should be weighed to have an impact.  Garr Reynolds uses the acronym PUNCH as a device for planning your message introductions.

We always introduce a subject by explaining why it is important.  We want our listeners to know why what we are saying matters.  We plan ahead and know where we want our listeners to be when we’re done.  We want to let people know that they really want to listen because this will be good. Starting your talk with a PUNCH makes them want to hear more.  Starting with a PUNCH will knock their socks off!

In The Naked Presenter Garr Reynolds teaches that the opening of a talk should carry a PUNCH.  The acronym PUNCH helps us remember five things that the beginning of a talk might contain to make its lesson memorable.  Good openings, Garr tells us, often contain something Personal, Unexpected, Novel, Challenging, or Humorous.

Share a personal story or fact.  Making it personal helps us to initially connect with people who are listening to us.  This does not mean we are to give our resume.  Rather, by sharing a bit of ourselves, we give our topic emotional relevance to our listeners.  Another great thing about a personal story is what we don’t need notes for it.  You can tell a personal story while maintaining direct eye contact with your audience.  The personal story we tell should illustrate in some way the main point we are trying to make.  A personal story not only sets our listener at ease it set us at ease as well.

Say or do something unexpected.  Most people’s attention spans are only about 10 minutes long.  You can get them interested and hold that interest a little longer by starting with something they didn’t expect.  Everyone loves a surprise.  It might be a quote, a question, or a fact, or you might do something unexpected.

Show or tell something novel.  Include a story or statistic that no one has heard.  Use a powerful or memorable image to introduce your subject.  If you’re not going to tell people something they didn’t already know why should they have come in the first place?  Most people are listening to you because they want to learn something new or hear something original.  Everyone in your audience wants to make a discovery about themselves or God’s word.

Challenge their assumptions.  Challenge their thinking.  Challenge their intellect.  Challenge their imagination.  People come to your church, study, or class specifically to be challenged.  Don’t disappoint them!  In a Christian setting the idea of a challenge takes on even more meaning because everything we say and do has eternal significance.  If we challenge someone, it should not be only a moral challenge but also the spiritual challenge.  Our aim is not to make people better but more like Christ.  Our goal should not only be to teach people how to live but also to show them how to have eternal life.

Use humor.  Laughter not only engages your audience but disarms them as well.  Someone once said, while their mouths are open in laughter you can spoon in the medicine.  (Or they said something like that.  The idea is not original with me, that’s for sure.  But it is a good one.)  Garr warns, however, that starting with a joke usually falls flat.  He recommends forgetting about jokes and instead  make an ironic observation, share an anecdote or tell a humorous story that is relevant to your point or topic.  You tap into people’s emotions with humor.  Laughter also releases endorphins, relaxes us, and can even change our perspective a bit.  Just be sure your humor is relevant to your subject and appropriate to your audience and setting.

The prophets of the Old Testament always used a PUNCH.  As we read their sermons and writings, we see that they were masters of the unexpected, the original, and the unforgettable.  God himself taught the prophets how to do this and commanded them to use these methods to get His message across.  Think of Jeremiah in chapter 19.  The Lord told Jeremiah to go and buy a new clay jar from the potter.    (Jer. 19:1-3)  He was to take some of the elders and the priests and warn them that the God of Israel was going to bring disaster on them because they had forsaken him and worshiped other gods.  They had even burned their children in the fire as offerings to the idol Baal.  Jeremiah was to take the elders and priests to the very valley where they made the sacrifices to the idols and when he was speaking to them, he was to throw down the new pottery jar smash it to bits at their feet.  (Jer. 19:10-11)

When God wanted people to listen he never pulled punches he struck hard.   If you want your introduction to really knock them out, start with a PUNCH.

Have a SHARP Focus to your Teaching

Whether you teach or preach it is important that you keep the main idea in FOCUS at all times. The main purpose of this website is to encourage and empower you to be a more effective Bible teachers or speaker, so I would like to share with you an acronym for things to add so that you communicate most effectively. Mnemonic devices are not only good for us to use in teaching others, they are also handy devices to have up our sleeve as we prepare a Bible lesson or talk.

In one of the best books I’ve read lately there is a great acronym for speakers. SHARP. I’ll give you the acronym, but you need to read the book. Give it to your college seniors, your co-workers and anyone who you sense has a lot more potential than self-confidence. It is called You’ve God to Be Believed to be Heard: The Complete Book of Speaking in Business and in Life! by Bert Decker. Okay enough of the advertising-I should get a kickback don’t you think?

When you are speaking or teaching you want to help your listeners focus on the point you are making, you want to keep their attention, and you want to make your point memorable. Make your point SHARP:

S-Stories and Examples: Jesus knew the power of story. Sometimes he didn’t even explain the story. That was Jesus. Usually, you and I should let our listeners know what our story has to do with our teaching subject.

H-Humor: You can use jokes but better yet, use your own personal brand of humor. Do you have a dry wit? I often use self-deprecating humor. Decker says that it is “virtually impossible to dislike someone who makes us laugh.” Someone has said: When their mouths are open with laughter slip in the pill of truth.

A-Analogy : Comparisons, contrasts, other things in the same category etc will help make your ideas more memorable or will help others to see or better understand your point.

R-References and Quotes: These should be written down and read. I have been known to misquote a statistic and have to email the entire group with a correction-not good. Quotes and references and validity to your statements. They help you to be believable. They can be quotes, facts, data, statistics articles or quotes from broadcasts. Personally, I would add, the shorter the better. If you want to give us a two page quote, then it is not a quote so much as you reading to us which is usually boring. Instead, give a one or two sentence quote and tell us the rest in your own words.

P-Pictures and Visual Aids: Visual material can be used to REINFORCE what you are saying. Anything that will add interest and is on point is good. People remember better what they both see and hear. “Presentations using visual aids are 43% more persuasive than unaided presentations.”-not sure what type of presentations this statistic speaks to but it is good to note. A picture is worth a thousand words. However, I have found that Power Points can distract my audience so I use them sparingly. A good rule of thumb is to use a blank black slide when you want your audience to look at you. I am learning this. A quick note on Slides, less is more (less writing, fewer slides, less information), use high contrast (black, white, red), bigger writing is better (36 font).

There is another acronym I’ll throw in for free from my Doctor of Ministry residency at Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary: Take the truth to all SEATS: use Story, Example, Analogy, Testimony, and Self-Disclosure. The addition of Testimony means that you can either find a testimony from someone else or actually have someone else give a testimony on your topic or application or point. Self-disclosure can be powerful but is tricky. You must not go so far as to cause your listeners to loose respect for you. Self-disclosure should not be something that will fuel gossip for weeks. Self-disclosure is usually most effective if it is very humble.

When Blessings Bring a Curse 

The scary little question I’m afraid to ask is this, why does God bless us with so much when so often those God generously blesses fall away from Him?  You’ve probably heard of King Solomon the son of King David.  He was very devout in following God and once even brought 1000 burnt offerings to worship God. ( 2 Chron. 1:6) When God asked him what Solomon wanted as a blessing, Solomon humbly asked for wisdom and knowledge to better lead the nation he was king over. (2 Chron. 1:7-10)  God gave him amazing wisdom and knowledge but also riches and honor. (2 Chron. 1:11-12)

Solomon used those riches and those saved by his father to build the first temple in Jerusalem. (1 Kings 6:1) At first, Solomon was a very good and wise leader and a devout follower after Yahweh. (1 Kings 8:22-23) But as his wealth and fame increased and increased and increased, the amount of THINGS he owned began to be overwhelming and in his popularity it was hard to keep a humble heart.  He lost integrity and did business with the bad guys. (2 Chron. 1:16)  He showed off in front of big wigs-especially female big wigs (like the Queen of Sheba 1 Kings 10:6-7).

After twenty years his wealth and popularity and business dealings had so clouded his judgment that he forgot to be generous with his old friends and business partners-the ones who had supported him and helped him get to the top. (1 Kings 9:10-12) His son who was to succeed him managed to be such a bad ruler that 10 of the 12 tribes of Israel succeeded from the nation. (1 Kings 12:10-12) Solomon’s son’s arrogance far exceeded even that of his late father.  It was only in faithfulness to his Grandfather David that God allowed Solomon’s son to rule even a part of the former nation.

Are we blessed at times in spite of ourselves because of our past faithfulness or that of our parents or grandparents?  Do we get to thinking that our wealth is due to our hard work or intelligence rather than acknowledging that God is the owner of all?  I take these stories found in 1 Kings 8-11 as more than just a cautionary tale to those of us who are greatly blessed.  How can I keep my blessings from bring a curse on my family?

Deuteronomy 17:14-20 lays out how a ruler should live.  I may not be a king, but I can see that these verses apply to those, like myself, who have been greatly blessed.  First, watch that you don’t forget your roots. (Dt. 17:16) Second, don’t forget your morals. (Dt. 17:17)  Third, don’t get greedy.  Fourth keep the Bible has a high priority, read it regularly, do what it says, keep learning to reverence God. (Dt. 17:18-19)  Fifth, stay humble. (Dt. 17:20) And finally, sixth, don’t break the commandments of God, in fact, don’t even turn slightly to the right of left of following them.  In this way you will remain long in your kingdom, as will your children.

As I read Solomon’s story I see that he systematically broke each of these guidelines.  Though he had everything on earth a person could ever want, he failed to keep his promises to God.  I don’t want to end up like King Solomon.  I don’t want my family to end up like his.  If David had seen what became of his son he must have wept. 

But you and I have a king of our own, King Jesus, who died and lives to keep us from the trap of sin.  Even as the rules of life given in Deuteronomy still make perfect sense in a practical way, the death of our King on the cross paid the price for the times when we break the rules.  Even though I haven’t always lived with the integrity expected of those blessed by God I can ask for and accept the forgiveness Christ offers me.  It is by the grace of God that when I find myself starting down that slippery slide to the bottom I can stop and claim the forgiveness of sins and the righteousness he gives me.  I can ask for the Holy Spirit to help me up the ladder and out of the pit and into the blessing of God again. 

As far as we know, Solomon did not stop his downward slide or ask for forgiveness though when he was younger he had prayed fervently that God would remain ready to forgive those who were sorry for their sins (1 Kings 8:46-51).  Solomon’s own son suffered the consequences of Solomon’s folly. (1 Kings 11:11-12)

In the end, our children will not remember and respect us for the money we made, the great houses we built, or the cars we drove.  What they will remember is how we prayed for them, how we lived with integrity, the way we treated the taxi driver.  The inheritance we pass on to our children is a heart that remains true to God to the end and a life of integrity. (1 Kings 9:3-5) Thank you Jesus for offering us not the ladder of success but the cross of Jesus Christ which brings forgiveness and your Spirit which offers us strength to live rightly.

Hunting for Eggs (Treasure!)

““Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.” (Matthew 13:45–46, ESV)

Finding a pearl is worth 50 on a string.  Good Bible teachers like to share the treasure they have found in Scripture, but even better yet, we like to help our students find treasure themselves.  Treasure that is given to you is great!  But treasure that you find on your own little “exploration in the woods” is invaluable AND you will not soon forget it.

We can use questions to help people look for treasure in the scripture.  Don’t make the questions point directly at the answer-that is no fun.  What if you were on an Easter Egg Hunt and your mother walked you around the house and pointed to every jelly bean?  That would NOT be any fun. 

I had an elderly aunt, Aunt Edna.  Her husband had been a traveling evangelist and they had never had the chance to have children before he died.  Aunt Edna loved children and she always came for Easter.  She was more excited about the Easter egg hunt then we children were.  She would sneak around and hide more candy while we were in another room hunting there.  Then she would say, “I spy, with my little eye…”  She would gaze in the direction of the Easter treasure which would be in a place we thought we had already been to. 

After Jesus’ Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem at his last Passover Feast he went back to Bethel for the night.  Bethel was where Mary and Martha and Lazarus lived.  Maybe Jesus even stayed at Martha’s, she loved to entertain.   But I don’t think he got breakfast before starting back to Jerusalem in the morning because the text says he was hungry.  Mk. 11:11-12

As they were walking back to the festival, Jesus saw a fig tree off in the distance, but when he went out to the fig tree he saw that there were only leaves and no figs.  According to the fount of knowledge we call Wikipedia, fig trees have two harvests, a small one in the spring and a more full harvest in late summer or fall.   Because the tree looked so lush, Jesus hoped for some fruit even though it was only Passover time.  When he found none, he cursed the fig tree saying, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again!” Mk. 11:13-14

I kind of get the feeling Jesus was in a really bad mood (I’m talking tongue-in-cheek here) because the next thing he does is drive out the money changers and those selling sacrifices from the temple in Jerusalem.  Mk. 11:15-17  A point to remember, if God stays at your place for the night, you want to make sure he at least gets a bagel and coffee before he leaves for the day. Mk. 11:15-16

…..

On the way back to Bethel that evening Jesus and his disciples passed that same tree and low and behold, it was dead and withered.  It looked like it had been dead for a lot longer than 12 hours.  There was not a leaf left on it.  The whole thing was withered.  The disciples were shocked.  They had overheard Jesus curse the tree but they never expected this. Mk. 11:20-21

Jesus uses their shock as a teachable moment.  Jesus teaches them about living a life of faith.  Have faith in God and if you tell a mountain to be cast into the sea, it will be done.  Mk. 11:22-23

So, that leaves me a bit confused (no pun intended).   Why did Jesus curse the fig tree in the first place?  Was it only so that he would have a great illustration to teach with later?  Was he really just grumpy?  I think there is more to it than that.

Jesus himself had once told a story about a man who had a fig tree planted in his vineyard.  Every year he came out to pick some figs and there were none.  “For three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree without finding any.  Cut it down!  Why does it even use up the ground?”  But the vineyard keeper asked if he couldn’t just have one more year to dig around and get some air to its roots and to give it some fertilizer. Luke 13:6-9  The point is, fig trees that only produce leaves are not worth dirt.

I have a little apple orchard in my front yard with twelve beautiful trees.  Every spring the trees flower and little apples start to bud but by the time the apples are supposed to be ripening they are all gone.  There are none anywhere, even on the ground.  I have never had one apple off of any of those trees.  If you look closely at the ends of the branches they have been torn off.  I thought it was the men we hire to prunes and fertilize the trees but they tell me it is the raccoons and the deer.  I want to install eight foot deer fencing around the whole orchard and put electronic raccoon repelling devices all around the trees to see if we can actually grow enough apples for a pie.  My husband insists that he could buy a lot of apples for the cost of all of that fencing.  That is not the point!!!  Apple trees should produce fruit.

Adam and Eve had a fig tree in the garden.  They ate the fruit and then used the leaves to make coverings for themselves when they realized they were naked.  Gen. 3:7  They used the leaves to try to cover up the fact that they had sinned.  They hoped if they put on some leaves, maybe God wouldn’t notice.

Jesus was likely thinking about Jerusalem and its coming destruction when he cursed that worthless fruit tree (Hosea 9:10, Jer. 24:1-10) but the fact that he used the cursed tree to teach the disciples how to live a daring life of faith leads me to believe that we are meant to personalize this lesson as well.

What Jesus told his disciples, when they asked about the withered tree, was that with faith, all things are possible.  All things for which you pray and ask, believing that you will receive them, will be granted to you.  Mk. 11:24-25

The message of the cursed fig tree is that believers who bear no fruit are just as worthless as a dead tree. They aren’t worth dirt.   But with faith there is no reason to be fruitless.  Ask God in faith and you can move mountains.