peace, 2020

My word for 2020 was peace.  It was an interesting choice for 2020, especially considering the coronavirus/COVID pandemic.  But it has been much deeper than that.  In June of 2019, Brandi and I participated in an enneagram personality workshop with our church, and I discovered that I was a perfectionist.  To some extent, I already knew this, but with subsequent personality coaching with a lady from our church, I began to realize how my personality type had some strong negative impacts on my self, my wife, and my children.   At the end of February, I had a wonderful Sozo prayer time with John and Celia and prayed through breaking free from workaholism and perfectionism.  Unfortunately, in mid-July, I had a hard conversation with my dad, but the Lord used it to catalyze some deeper investigation into my soul and personality. In mid-September, I had my first experience with prayer in the courts of Heaven, and I felt a breakthrough from the grip of anger. In mid-November, I started counseling, and I have made some good progress on beginning to let go of expecting the world to be perfect.   My counselor has helped me start trying to let others live life on God's terms, not mine.  On a run around Crosbyton last week, I realized that I can give peace away, not because it originates with me, but because I carry the Shepherd.  I think these are progressive steps, like peeling layers of an onion.  I thank the Lord for tilling the soil of my heart to remove these rocks that have been limiting the growth and fruitfulness of His word in my life.  It is also impressive to me how the progress in my own inner peace circles back to allowing more joy (my word for 2019) to flow through me.

The Lord has also been working on my paradigm of parenting, shifting from a perspective of an owner to a steward.  While I do think a biological father has an enormous responsibility and privilege of projecting the character of the Heavenly Father to his children, I am growing in my appreciation of my role as a spiritual brother to my children.  I want to be faithful to shepherd my children toward Christ. As I was reading the prophecy in Malachi 4 about Elijah returning to turn the hearts of parents to their children and visa versa, the thought occurred to me, I want to be intentional to seek revival in our home.

Father, thank you for patiently loving me.  Jesus, thank you for shepherding me, and thank you for being the King of Peace.  Holy Spirit, thank you for growing your fruit of peace in me.  I love you.

Purity is important for spiritual leaders

Purity is not a prerequisite for salvation; otherwise, none of us would be saved.  However, purity is essential for promotion in spiritual leadership.

Zechariah 3:6‭-‬7 NIV

The angel of the Lord gave this charge to Joshua: "This is what the Lord Almighty says: 'If you will walk in obedience to me and keep my requirements, then you will govern my house and have charge of my courts, and I will give you a place among these standing here.

Holiness is not to be confused with purity; holiness is proximity to God.  Jesus made a way for each of us to humbly approach God, without needing to clean ourselves up beforehand. He will direct the purification process after we connect with Him.

Heavenly Father, thank you for your mercy.  Thank you for not requiring me to clean up before I enter your presence.  Thank you for your patient love to continue purifying me.  Father, I want to be an effective spiritual leader.  Holy Spirit, thank you for your firm and gentle guidance. I will follow you. I love you.

Parenting towards the chief end of man

I have been (very slowly) reading Shepherding a Child's Heart by Tedd Tripp, and in Chapters 5, he highlighted the incompleteness of several seemingly good parenting goals:

- to be "successful" in life

- to develop special skills

- to be psychologically adjusted (good self esteem)

- to be saved

- to be religious

- to be well-behaved

- to be well-educated

Tripp suggested that the optimal overarching parenting goal is consistent with the chief end of man, that our children "glorify God and enjoy Him forever" (Shorter Catechism).

It seems like this fundamental concept should have been obvious to me before reading this, but this chapter was so clarifying for me.  Throughout my daily interactions with my children, how do I explicitly and implicitly shepherd my children to glorify God and enjoy Him forever?

Father, thank you for helping me consciously evaluate my parenting goals.  I want to be a faithful steward of the children that you have placed in my care.  Please forgive me where I have failed so far, and show your redemptive power in the time ahead.  I love you.

It pleases the King to give us Haman's estate

Esther 8:1‭-‬2 NIV

That same day King Xerxes gave Queen Esther the estate of Haman, the enemy of the Jews. And Mordecai came into the presence of the king, for Esther had told how he was related to her. The king took off his signet ring, which he had reclaimed from Haman, and presented it to Mordecai. And Esther appointed him over Haman's estate.

Haman is obviously a type of the satan.

In a trinitarian view: the King could represent the Father; Queen Esther, who risked her life, represents Christ; and Mordecai, who proceeds from both the Father and the Son, represents the Holy Spirit.

In an ecclesiological view: the King could represent Jesus, who is the King of Kings; Queen Esther is a type of the Church, the Bride of Christ; and Mordecai is a type of every disciple, appointed with authority and power to appropriate the resources of the Kingdom to accomplish the righteous will of God.  In the sense of each disciple being part of the type of Queen Esther, we have an ongoing privilege and responsibility to petition the king for deliverance from our enemy (consistent with Jesus's model prayer for the disciples).  In the sense of each disciple being part of the type of Mordecai, we need to boldly leverage our delegated authority and the inexhaustible resources of the Kingdom to overcome the enemy.

It pleases the King to take the resources from the satan and give them to us.

Luke 11:22 NIV

But when someone stronger attacks and overpowers him, he takes away the armor in which the man trusted and divides up his plunder.

Father, I praise you for being the King.  Jesus, I praise you for being the King.  Thank you for guaranteeing our victory over the satan, sin, and death.  May we boldly step into the identity that you have given us and faithfully advance your mission.  I love you.

Godly mothers are so important

I am reading through 2 Chronicles, and Holy Spirit showed me how the devotion of the mother directly affects the life of the king and the blessing of the nation of Judah.  Generally, the good kings who led the nation to follow Yahweh were raised by faithful mothers from Judah, and most of bad kings who led the nation away from Yahweh were raised by mothers from other nations that did not worship Yahweh.

I think that is why it was so special that God chose Mary to be the mother of Jesus.  He wanted someone who would faithfully raise Jesus in the faith.

I am so thankful for Brandi and how she helps me and our children continue to grow in Christ.

Father, thank you so much for blessing me with a life of partnership in the faith with Brandi! Please bless each of my children with a spouse who loves you, is mature in the faith, and is actively growing closer to you their whole life so that my grandchildren and my grandchildren's grandchildren will do the same (if Jesus doesn't return by then).  I love you.