"DRESS ME IN YOUR RIGHTEOUSNESS ALONE!"

The above, quickly done ink and watercolor image was part of a recent online CFO retreat held using Zoom. This portion of the short, one-morning retreat was that part of our daily CFO camp activities called "Creatives." It's a personal time of prayer in which you ask for God's guidance in some creative activity (using clay, paints, pastels, poetry or prose), then let God speak more deeply to you through what you've created. Finally, if so led in the show & tell conclusion, you can share with the group what you created and what God said to you through it.

This image was in my mind as soon as "Creatives" began. After its completion, God spoke to me about how the righteousness of Christ is much larger than we are. We need to grow up spiritually so that it fits on us, or rather, that we fit into it. The verse that came to mind was Ephesians 4:13, where we must continue to be "edified" (built up) "until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ." 

For almost 40 years of my life, CFO (Camps Farthest Out) has been a vehicle of spiritual formation, especially in the area of prayer. It was established back in the 1930s by Glenn Clark, a college professor who taught creative writing and coached sports. He took some students for a 2-week camping adventure in prayer on an island the farthest out from the New York coast. That's how the camp got its name.

Besides daily morning "Meditations" and afternoon "Prayer Groups," Glenn Clark's emphasis on experimentation in prayer involved using bodily movement in a daily part of the camp called "Rhythms" or "Devotion in Motion" or, less commonly, "Spiritual Aerobics." It is very much like the playful bodily exercises done in kindergarten. But after first discovering CFO as an adult, I found that it was a stretch for me to participate (pun intended). Now, however, with my body's shortness-of-breath issues, I can still stand and make gentle hand motions, but any kind of dance-like activity would send me to the ground praying for more air!

This year (2022), the Silver Sierra CFO Camp, which I usually attend, is scheduled at Camp Alta in Alta, CA (off of I-80, 10 miles above Colfax) from June 12th thru June 17th. If you'd like to attend, here is their link for registration: California Silver Sierra CFO | Association of Camps Farthest Out (cfonorthamerica.org). Or on that page, click on the "Home" button to see where and when other camps are scheduled in the USA this year.

If you've never been to a CFO, I promise you, it will be a "far out" experience with God.

WHEN THE MIND STRAYS IN PRAYER...

Spiritual disciplines can be valuable sheepdogs effectively nipping at the feet of our straying souls. At times, special periods of devotional activity—prayer, fasting, silence, solitude, confession, meditation, spiritual reading, self-denying service—may assist us in staying on the narrow path of spiritual health. Yet, it’s always better to have the Shepherd in sight, or at least in hearing distance, so we can hear His call, “Follow Me.” He is not only the true Lord of our Christian life but its primary Spiritual Director.

Christ’s presence in practicing these disciplines is essential, if they’re to remain a source of nurturing our spirituality. In fact, our whole life in Christ is best understood and lived in the same way Jesus Himself lived His earthly life: “Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works.” (John 14:10).

For me, learning to acknowledge this pattern—myself in “in Christ” and “Christ in me”—is itself a new spiritual discipline, and not one easily mastered. Yet, as I described in a previous blog article, “Union Life’s Incarnational Spirituality,” this isn’t only the real secret of Christian living but the ultimate purpose of the Incarnation. God’s Son became human to purchase and wed a human Bride. He was after an eternally intimate union with us, but this intimacy already began the moment we were “born again” into His Body, the Church.

How does this fact of personal union with Christ relate to this article’s title? If Christ is present in us, living through us, even living as us, which is the bold proclamation of Gal 2:20, we ought to acknowledge this spiritual reality practically, especially in our conscious prayer life. Therefore, we need to explore the direction of our straying minds, which are in union with “the mind of Christ,” (1 Cor 2:16). Straying thoughts that seem to interrupt our intercessions and supplications may actually be a divine source of refocusing our attention. God has certain concerns related specifically to our unique individuality. There isn’t an aspect of our lives in which He is not interested and involved.

We know that God uses lists. He listed many laws in the Old Testament for His people to follow. But when Jesus reduced the Old Testament Law into two commandments—loving God and loving our neighbor (Mat 22:37-40)—He was expressing the ever-expanding motive within His very nature. God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are eternally a Triune Family of Love (1 John 4:8). That divine love cannot be packaged in a list of rules, nor can its reach be limited to our usually useful prayer lists.

So, how does this play out in experience? We try to make sure we get through our mental or written prayer list, but God already heard these requests when we listed them. Now we’re suddenly thinking about the gas dryer that needs to be replaced, or the fence that needs to be repaired, or the bill that needs to be paid, or the bad news in this morning’s paper or news report. Thoughts may be scurrying around all over the place. Why do we let them distract us, when they can be immediately, one-by-one, invited into our prayers? God may be so pleased that we’re finally paying attention to His direction for our prayers that He extends His guidance to deeper areas in our hearts, as long as we keep listening.

Speaking of deeper issues... how do we handle thoughts easily recognized as personal temptations? We may be thinking of an injustice recently done to us, or of a sale we missed or the latest gadget we wish we owned, or of a nagging worry about a situation we have no control over. What if even darker possibilities enter our minds? What do we do?

I believe this is where the discipline of acknowledging our union with Christ’s mind is an essential practice in prayer. In the presence of especially troublesome thoughts, Jesus is still Lord. He knows exactly where these straying thoughts come from. He may be leading us to include their source in our hearts as a prayer target. He may want us to intercede in special ways for the individuals involved in or connected to these thoughts. After these seemingly distractive thoughts are thoroughly bathed in prayer, He may say, “Now, go back to your prayer list. I'm also interested in those things, even more than you are.”

IS TRUMP 'A Dark Horse'?

(SEE my previous post)

Maybe it’s a coincidence... maybe not. But this morning, I felt God confirmed my immediate prayer on learning that Trump was president-elect. With neither rejoicing nor remorse, I had prayed, “God get a hold on that man’s heart.” Then after breakfast, I went back to work on next Sunday’s sermon.

I usually don’t click on my computer Bible program’s daily “Devotional” tab, but today I did. It was set to “November 9 - Morning” in Daily Light on the Daily Path. Here’s the verse chosen for that day:

I have laid help upon one that is mighty; I have exalted one chosen out of the people. — Psalm 89:19

That was striking! Earlier in this election year, when already depressed about its prospects, I felt God telling  me, “It will be ‘a dark horse’.” When I was a boy, my dad told me ‘a dark horse’ was someone unexpected and unconnected to the political machine, who would come on the scene suddenly and take the lead. Well, that description fits Trump, especially the ‘dark’ part.

Feeling apathetic as Election Day approached, I wondered about how God feels—hardly ever getting to make clear-cut choices between bad and good alternatives in human history. He always has to decide the less evil of two or more evil situations. In this sin-cursed world of selfish human interactions, there’s no possible human scenario He can allow to happen that isn’t subject to some sort of ‘bad’ worming its way into it.

That’s how I felt about this election. My vote was powerless to bring about ‘good.’ I could only choose between the lesser of two evils, reluctantly following my own flawed human judgment about “the lesser.”

Yet, as far as the election results are concerned, this Scripture verse says my spontaneous prayer was right (theologically correct!). My voting job isn’t over. As a responsible citizen of God’s Kingdom, I must keep casting my vote before the King, praying, “Lord Jesus, grab hold of that man’s heart.”

Isn’t that always our Christian duty: to pray for those in political leadership? So, let’s pray that God will lay His “help upon one that is mighty.” If God has allowed Trump to be ‘a dark horse’—an “exalted one chosen out of the people”—then let’s vote in prayer that God cleanses the darkness from his heart and guides him to follow His wise and just ways in leading this nation.

THE MIRACULOUS HEALING OF ROBERT LIVINGSTONE

In 1970, Rosemary and I attended a summer program at the University of Montreal. Before it started, we stayed with the Wilkinsons, a missionary family in Ville d’Anjou. During our few weeks there, we tried evangelizing teens on the street. Never had we met such strong resistance to Christ’s message. However, a bright spot in our experience was meeting 12-year-old Robert Livingstone, who told us he had trusted Jesus as His Savior a few years earlier.

Robert enthusiastically supported our efforts, often exhorting his peers to “listen to the truth” we were sharing. But they ignored him. The same disability that caused his two auto-pedestrian accidents had also rendered him almost illiterate. Robert was blind in one eye with “tunnel vision” in the other. His visual field was so narrow that he had to wag his head back and forth to scan the ground wherever he went. It was hard to leave him, when our French classes began.

One morning in prayer, God impressed on me to pray for Robert’s eyes. I finally got that opportunity when we went to visit Mr. Chivers, one of our French professors from Bob Jones University, who was staying at the Wilkinsons. Even though we told him how hard it was to reach the youth there, he insisted we take him to their nightly hang-out at the local supermarket. Indeed, it was the same crowd, same resistance. One of them scoffed, “If Jesus is real, why doesn’t he do miracles today?” Another challenged, “Yeah, if he shows up, then we’ll believe!”

Mr. Chivers replied with Christ’s parable in Luke 16:19-31. In hell, the rich man begged that Lazarus be sent to warn his brothers. Abraham replied that they already had God’s Word to warn them. But he persisted, “if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.” Abraham answered that, if they refused to believe God’s Word, they wouldn’t be convinced even if someone rose from death. Our teacher explained how the Jewish nation fulfilled this by failing to believe even after Christ’s resurrection. It would be the same with them. If they refused the Gospel, another miracle wouldn’t help them to believe.

“What a cop out!” – “You’re just avoiding our argument!” On and on they ranted, and just when I was fed up listening, I saw Robert zigzagging his way towards us in the dim lights of the parking lot. The crowd of teens were now in two groups—the guys arguing with Mr. Chivers and the girls with Rosemary. I decided to go meet Robert before he got closer, so we could talk quietly together. We were about 20 yards from the others.

After telling him that I’d soon be returning to the States, I recalled God’s direction to pray for his eyes. My prayer ended up rather wishy-washy. I envisioned God possibly healing him through the right kind of eye surgery or gradual medical treatment. In that frame of thought, I told him to keep praying for his own eyes, too. That prompted Robert to bow his head and simply ask, “Lord Jesus, please heal my eyes.” He immediately looked up, saying he felt a hand on his shoulder. I smiled, for that’s where my hand was. “And a hand came down on my head.”

Chills shot through me. I got goose bumps all over. “Robert, pray again, and this time really, really believe!”

He bowed his head once more, but instantly started shouting, “My eyes! I have my eyes! I can see!”

I was screaming “Praise God!” again and again as fast as my mouth could move. We were jumping around like two people gone crazy with joy. Robert suddenly cried, “I have to go tell my momma!” Before I could stop him, off he disappeared into the darkness. I ran over to find everyone, including Rosemary and Mr. Chivers, with blank stares and jaws gaping.

“This is what you kids just asked for—a miracle!” I bellowed at the young skeptics. “Jesus came and healed Robert’s eyes! Now do you believe what we’re saying?” No, it was just as predicted. Though the miracle shocked them, it led none to entrust their hearts to Christ. Silently, they all dispersed. But just as Mr. Chivers and Rosemary began interrogating me about what had happened, we saw Robert returning with tears streaming down his face.

“I’m scared to go home. Can you go with me?” It was our pleasure. And all along our the way to his apartment, Robert surveyed everything in amazement, saying, “Look at all the lights! They’re everywhere! The world is so big!”

When his mother opened the door, Robert threw his arms around her and burst forth with his wonderful news, “Oh, Momma, I have my eyes! I have my eyes!”

“What’s this nonsense?” Mrs. Livingstone scolded with a thick Scottish accent, pushing him away from her. “And who are these people? What have you done to him?”

So, this was why Robert feared reporting his miracle. But a much more cordial Mr. Livingstone soon came to our rescue. He invited us in and very pragmatically suggested a test. Covering Robert’s other eye, he held up fingers in front of the eye that had been blind. Robert counted them perfectly, each time his father held up a new set. “Amazing . . . truly amazing. Please, sit down and tell us about this. Can we get you some tea?” He told us Robert’s vision loss had been progressive and that, medically, total blindness was predicted.

Mr. Chivers left the next morning. Word spread about Robert’s healing, and the following night we returned to find the parking lot teeming with a more receptive group of young people. I boldly shared the Gospel, and two young men asked Christ into their hearts. But where was Robert? A week later, I went back to his apartment. It was empty. The concierge said the family moved back to Scotland with no forwarding address. This devastated me. How I wanted to stay in touch, following Robert’s progress in the Christian faith.

Five years later, again in Quebec and working with Jeunesse en Mission (YWAM), we met a couple who grew up in Ville d’Anjou. They told us a strange tale about a Jehovah’s Witness couple who healed young Robert Livingstone’s eyes. We corrected their version of the story, but they could offer us no clue to Robert’s whereabouts. I’ve tried using the Internet to find him, but to no avail. Maybe someone reading this story can help put me in touch with him, if he’s still living. Or maybe I’ll have to wait for Heaven. . . .