Only Servants Have Moral Superiority

S

(1 Samuel 25:32) And David said to Abigail, "Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who sent you this day to meet me!"

O

Abigail was threatened by two quasi-kings. She quietly and actively defied her "worthless" husband Nabal to rescue their family from his dangerous misuse of prosperity and authority. In contrast, she openly confronted David in order to rescue her family from his cruel misuse of power and control. Her own repentance for "not seeing the servants David sent" (verses 24-28) seems mind-bogglingly trivial in contrast, but her repentance was the suspenseful event that finally opened their prison walls so they could escape from disaster into safety and wisdom.

A (Personal)

In this story, only the servants do right and see accurately. I see that only by taking on that role and those responsibilities do people make good choices. Abigail offered herself to David's service (and became a true queen). David, when he acted as God's servant, recognized that he needed to submit to and obey Abigail's request. And this story begins with a surprise guest of even greater importance. In this notice of Samuel's death, readers are reminded of the life of the greatest servant that David and Abigail's generations had ever seen. Samuel's life, from start to finish, was an unblemished example of honorable, honest service, even though he served in the shadow of greatly inferior kings. Hmmm ... whom do I relate to most in this story?

A (Psychological)

Yalom, in his book, The Gift of Therapy, advises a new generation of therapists to cherish their patients as actually mattering greatly to them. He says, "Let them enter your mind, influence you, change you--and [do] not to conceal this from them" (p. 27). Larson explains that "our empathy and helping usually begin with a perception of a social bond with people needing assistance," and our bonds of "we-ness" help us resist the barriers and destructive blindnesses of "they-ness" (The Helper's Journey, p. 16). This shift is very difficult. The conflicting values of Nabal's, Abigail's, David's, and their servants would have been impossible to sort out (except by sheer violence) had it not been for the respect given to the higher authority--God's kingdom. Both Abigail's and David's decisions to repent are not unlike an addict's challenge to disengage from neurotic paradoxical behaviors--the addict's constant choice to continue in self-defeating behaviors even while recognizing the counterproductive nature of those actions (Larson, p. 72). Our answer as well lies in valuing the long-term gains that are achieved by sacrificing one's short-term, immediate comfort and safety. David and Abigail's encounter demonstrates the reasonableness of the psyche of Christ's kingdom, where servants are given the greater honor and authority (Luke 22:24-27; John 13:1-17).

P

Lord, I long to serve You. I dislike serving my Nabal-like tendencies of inflating of my own importance. For too long, I've served my David-the-Controller tendencies to push my own agenda. How long have I indulged in Abigail-like blindness and avoided recognizing the importance of the people you've sent to influence me? Instead of being stone-hearted, I want to repent like David and Abigail did. I want to be constant and faithful, like Samuel was. May I always keep Your service--never my own sense of entitlement--as my sole objective.

Warning: Mature Moral Themes

S
(Deuteronomy 21:18-21) ... Then his father and his mother shall take hold of him ... and say to the elders of the city, "This our son is stubborn and rebellious; he is a glutton and a drunkard." Then all the men of the city what stone him to death ... so shall you purge the evil from your midst, and all Israel shall hear, and fear.

O
What happens in the privacy of homes--the effectiveness or ineffectiveness of private disciplines--can disfigure individuals, families, and an entire nation's personality. In Hebrew, stubborn [5627] is the state of defecting from and resisting a healthy relationship. Rebellion [4784] is overt defiance, a callous and bitter offensiveness. Gluttony [2151] is a flighty, frivolous inability to value morals or appreciate the gravity of larger consequences. Drunkenness [5435] is a dependence on being inebriated (hiding reality). God holds people corporately and individually responsible for identifying and purging the both presence and practice of such evils. This perfect storm, however, of rejecting correction (stubbornness), disregarding or even denying others' pain (rebellion), defending moral delusions (gluttony) while defying truth (drunkenness), is best summarized as a rejection of Jesus Christ--the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6).

A (Personal)
Herod and various Hebrew kings (including David) demonstrate the terrifying and subtle ease with which these deceptive patterns can take root in one's heart. In history, we learn of destructiveness of the Milosevics, Stalins, Hitlers, and Chairman Maos, and we lament not having stopped them from gaining such power. The question begs to be answered: "What am I doing to resist the seeds of such harm in my own soul and in the souls of people I love and live near?"

A (Psychological)
In her book, Evil Genes: Why Rome Fell, Hitler Rose, Enron Failed, and My Sister Stole My Mother's Boyfriend (2007), Barbara Oakley has brilliantly set the problem of evil in the intersection of history, psychology, and genome-based research. The collision is spectacular. She defines this Machiavellian personality in a way that, from my view, matches the successfully sinister evil that Moses proscribed: "a person who is charming on the surface, a genius at sucking up to power but capable of mind-boggling acts of deceit for control or personal gain... [a person who is] unscrupulous and self-serving and therefore capable of deeply malign behavior... a person whose narcissism combines with subtle cognitive and emotional disturbances in such a fashion as to make him believe that achieving his own desires, and his alone, is a genuinely beneficial--even altruistic--activity. Since the Machiavellian gives more emotional weight to his own importance than to that of anyone or anything else, achieving the growth of his preeminence by any means possible is always justified in his own mind. [These disturbances mean Machiavellians] can make judgments that dispassionate observers would regard as unfair or irrational. At the same time, however, the Machiavellians' unusual ability to charm, manipulate, and threaten can coerce others into ignoring their conscience and treading a darker path" (pp. 280-281).

P
Lord, I echo David's prayer: "Who rises up for me against the wicked? If the Lord had not been my help, my soul would have lived in the land of silence" (Psalm 94:16,17). I commit myself to stand against--first of all--the evil that seeks safety and welcome in my own thoughts. Lord, I cry out for Your insight so I could discern rightly between good and evil, and so I'd have courage to follow You even when it seems difficult (1 Kings 3:5-13). Lord, save us from ourselves.

Our Valuable Voices

S

(Leviticus 5:1) If anyone sins in that he hears a public adjuration to testify, and through he is a witness, whether he has seen or come to know the matter, yet does not speak, he shall bear his iniquity.

O

God holds people morally, spiritually, and socially responsible for what they witness and learn. In the process of healing communities (collective individuals), He expects people to contribute their own stories and understandings so the pool of common knowledge is made richer and broader.

A (Personal)

I often think my story or personal perspective is insignificant--sometimes because it's so different from other views, sometimes because it's so similar. Yes, seeing differently can also mean opportunity for growth, and seeing similarly can also mean opportunity for reinforcing truth and encouraging people. Through Wisdom's careful and constant tutoring, I can learn to discern (by faith) when my voice helps and when it hurts the building up of others. Sometimes, too, my contribution to the community might be in the initial voice that calls for this public adjuration.

A (Psychological)

Miller, Miller, Nunnally, and Wackman have created the popular "Awareness Wheel," which is a therapeutic intervention that helps couples skillfully invite their partners to communicate their thoughts with greater specificity (http://www.couplecommunication.com/). The couples learn to express themselves in five dimensions: Sensory Data (sight, hearing, felt sensations, smell, taste); Thoughts, Feelings (emotions); Wants (goals and motives); and Actions (specific behaviors). I think it also helps individuals better understand their own views of an issue. Although this tool uses a wheel metaphor, I've seen others effectively adapt it to a barrel or cylinder metaphor to indicate the depth issues have below the surface. I prefer yet another adaptation of that--the bank safety deposit box metaphor. I believe that buried in our brains are valuable insights that, like safety deposit boxes, contain perspectives that, if shared with others, can make both the owners and the community much richer. Sometimes we need other people's help in understanding just how valuable our insights are.

P

Lord, I know so little about how to measure the social value of the contributions of my story, my hypotheses, my observations. I am thankful, regardless of my maturity or accurate perceptions, that You love hearing my voice as I honestly and humbly talk to You and seek Your wisdom. So I submit my thoughts wholly to You and Your purposes: "Let the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, my strength (my Rock) and my Redeemer" (Psalm 19:14).

Love vs. Truth

S

(1 Peter 1:22) Now that you have purified your souls by your obedience to the truth through the Spirit so that you have a genuine mutual love, love one another deeply [constantly] from a pure heart (NRSV).

O

Our souls [psuche] are that immaterial, psychological part of our being that we have in common with animals--the seat of our sensations, appetites, and passions. It's corrupted (impure), but God can progressively heal it through His Spirit's communion with ours. (Only people, however, have a spirit [pneuma] which can come alive to commune with God.) Peter defines purification as becoming holy--fully devoted to God. Peter explains that we purify our souls by obeying truth (which He defines as God's Word).

A (Personal)

So how do we know we walk in the reality of truth? What test may I apply so I know that I am purified in body, soul, and spirit (1 Thessalonians 5:23)? I'm glad Peter was so wonderfully clear. If I have a genuine, reciprocal, and continuous love for people, I know I have been shaped by the realities of God's Word and have been fully dedicated to Him (1 John 3:18,19).

A (Psychological)

The congruency or authenticity of a person's life is a key component of psychological assessments. In communication assessments, Virginia Satir believed one's looks, feelings, tone of voice, and body language should congruently (purely) reflect the same message. As a person-centered therapist, Carl Roger asserts, "the core of psychological maladjustment is the incongruity between the organism's total experience and what is accurately symbolized as part of the self-concept. The incongruence between self and experience is the basic estrangement in human beings. [Like] a house divided against itself [Matthew 12:25] ... psychopathology reflects a divided personality, with the tensions, defenses, and inadequate functioning that accompany a lack of wholeness" (Prochaska and Norcross. 2003. p. 144).

I disagree, however, with Rogerian unconditional positive regard toward clients. Prochaska and Norcross explain that, according to Existentialist and Gestalt therapists (pp. 124, 192), in order to be authentic (pure, congruent), the therapist can respond with positive regard only toward honesty and authenticity but never toward lying and pathology. Psychology struggles, therefore, in this double bind of recognizing the struggle and necessity of living in congruently with reality (truth) while also recognizing the struggle and necessity of sharing life and values congruently with others (love). Once again, Scripture (through this letter of Peter's) provides a realistic and beneficial means of doing that. God's Word is that objective Truth to the extent that we understand it from God's perspective rather than our individualistic human interpretations. The more consistently we align with it, then the more we will also be able to consistently experience a shared unconditional positive regard (love) for others. Our congruent, realistic integration of God's Truth with God's Love, therefore, answers this psychological dilemma.

P

Lord, nothing could be more fun! I've discovered that I'm healthiest and happiest when I'm truly and deeply loving people--especially those hard-to-love people in my life. And it is certainly fun to be loved by people, tool Thank You for bringing us into Your life so we can know and enjoy Your love!

Avoiding Getting Lost

S

(2 Chronicles 32:25) But Hezekiah did not make return according to the benefit done to him, for his heart was proud. Therefore, wrath came upon him and Judah and Jerusalem.

O

This describes Hezekiah's deathbed struggle (fortunately, he repented and turned the wrath away). At age 31, six years into his monarchy, he saw the Assyrians raze Israel and enslave its people. At age 39, the Assyrians returned to do the same to him and Judah--but God miraculously intervened in response to Hezekiah's humble prayers. Following that victory, vast wealth flowed into Judah's treasuries and international esteem laid siege Hezekiah's heart ... successfully hardening it.

A (Personal)

How frighteningly, easily prosperity and favor turns grace into arrogance and entitlement. "Hezekiah prospered in all his works ... [and] God left him to himself, in order to test him and to know all that was in his heart" (verses 30, 31). Through Hezekiah's example, God teaches me to guard my heart with all diligence (Proverbs 4:23; Philippians 4:4-7) and to "return" to Him whenever He bestows benefits into my life. (This Hebrew word means to "convert" or to make "movement back to the point of departure.)

A (Psychological)

All change (positive or negative) creates stress. It rearranges the equilibrium or homeostasis of the family system, which creates a need to redefine its structure, rules, roles, and relationships. Pauline Boss, in her book Family Stress Management: A Contextual Approach, describes Hill's ABC-X model of stress management: A (provoking event or stressor), B (the family's resources or strengths at the time of the event), C (the meaning attached to the event by the family, individually and collectively), and X (the degree of stress). According to this model, when the ratio between the family system's support and the pressure on it shifts so that the pressure decreases and the support become stronger, recovery is occurring. Turning points result from (a) a change in the stressor event, (b) a change in the availability of resources for coping, or (c) a change in the family's perception of both factors (p. 67).

In these revelations of Hezekiah's life, Hezekiah failed to learn from his father Abraham's positive example. Whenever Abraham experienced a major change (positive or negative) in his life, he returned to his foundational promises from God--he renegotiated the changes back into the context of God's call and provisions for his life. He typically built an altar to solidify his restored relationship with the Lord. By doing this, he renewed his access to his family's (and the Lord's) resources (B in the ABC-X model) and he redefined the meaning of the event in the context of God's eternal perspective (C in the ABC-X model). This allowed him and his family to be resilient in the presence of change and worldly uncertainties.

P

Lord, I see that You long to bless me, but Your very blessings can easily become cement that hardens my heart. What can I "return" to You for all the benefits You lavish on me? Like David, I'll take the cup of salvation You offer me, I'll call upon Your name, I'll offer thanks to You, and I'll keep my promises to You (Psalms 116:12; 56:12).

7 Scars of Wisdom

S

(James 3:17) But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield [reasonable], full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy (NRSV).

O

Apparently, two kinds of wisdom are available to us: heavenly-spiritual or earthly-unspiritual-demonic (v. 15). Double-minded people grope for both kinds but end up with only the latter type, which bears the fruits of complete instability, disorder, and wickedness (1:5-8; 3:13-18). Getting Heaven's wisdom seems to be an if-then condition: James encourages us that if our ambition for God's wisdom is pure, then the results of His discipline of our lives will be evidenced by these seven marks of His wisdom (see also Hebrews 12:11).

A (Personal)

How then do I get this pure wisdom from God and its seven, highly prized evidences? James instructs: Just ask God for it. However, when asking (praying), ask from a heart that completely trusts God and delights only in fulfilling God's pleasures. His wisdom is not for fulfilling my hedonistic preferences or selfish lusts.

A (Psychological)

In the process of helping batterers learn to stop abusing their partner, several interventions include analyzing the emotions that trigger behaviors. Then, working backwards, they analyze the thoughts that trigger those emotions, and finally, they identify the belief constructs that trigger their destructive thought patterns. The hypothesis is that beliefs trigger thoughts, which trigger emotions, which trigger behaviors. What's missing, though, is the will. One might hold a belief system but still not be committed to it (James 2:19).

Existentialist Kierkegaard wrote the book, Purity of Heart Is to Will One Thing, and he defined it as seeking Good. He, as a Christian philosopher, believed Jesus Christ alone was purely good (Luke 18:19; Romans 10:4). Kierkegaard asks four questions to help people identify their primary motives and ambitions (central to what James discusses in this text): (1) What is your preoccupation with life? (2) In your occupation, what is your attitude of mind? Or how do you carry out your occupation? (3) What means do you use to carry out your occupation? Kierkegaard adds that means is as important as the end, as aim is a better measurement of the goal that where the bullet actually hits. And (4) What is your attitude towards others ... is it one of integrity, purity, and authenticity?

P

Thank You, Lord, for teaching us from Your Word how we might know our motives are pure from Your perspective. As James explained (4:7-10), I, too, (1) submit myself to You, (2) resist the devil's deceptions, (3) seek intimacy with You, (4) eliminate all competing motives from my heart, (5) commit myself to only doing good, (6) engage myself fully in repentance, and (7) humble myself to the supremacy of Your wisdom and goodness.

Healthy Stumps and Crucified Forests

S

(Isaiah 11:3,4) And [the Messiah's] delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge by what His eyes see or decide disputes by what His ears hear, but with righteousness He shall judge the poor and decide with equity for the meek of the earth....

O

Because His greatest pleasure and longing is to revere the Lord, the Messiah is not deceived by what He sees or by what disputers tell Him. His love and respect for His heavenly Father awakens yet another sense--His ability to sniff out, to smell with pleasure the invisible and inaudible presence and works of the Holy Spirit. His keen sensitivity to God equips Him to serve and lead and heal people. Isaiah said this is the result of the Holy Spirit resting on Him.

A (Personal)

Jesus makes available to me the same resource that helped Him teach and heal people: the Holy Spirit. The Spirit's gifts are described in three pairs (verse 2): (1) wisdom and understanding--intellectual and moral insight, (2) counsel and might--sound practical judgment with sufficient vigor to respond appropriately, and (3) knowledge and fear of God--the two parts of true religion (acquaintance with God through the foundation of love and reverential awe of God that prompts obedience).

A (Psychological)

When helping people work through disputes, more covert activity (invisible, inaudible) is taking place than is overtly presented. R. Michael's Metaframework describes the hidden feedback loops between people's means of process, organization, and development. Change and positive growth is complex, yet careful assessment that uses both overt and covert information is a vital part of the helping process. Through this prophecy of Isaiah's, God revealed that the culmination of godless wisdom leaves us devastated, like a clear-cut forest. Human wisdom and insight--though absolutely necessary--is insufficient. Yet, by conceding the fearful vulnerability of our blindness and deafness, with the Holy Spirit's input our hearing and eyesight (insight and judgment) can become fruitful (Isaiah 32:1-8).

P

Lord, thank You for making my foolishnesses such valuable teaching points. They now help me recognize Your presence and superiority. I choose to echo Paul's prayer in Romans 15:13,14, "God of Hope, fill me with all joy and peace in believing so I might abound in hope through the power of the Holy Spirit, so I might be full of goodness and all knowledge necessary for my day, and so I might be able to help others to perceive You, too."

Fresh Bread from a Real Baker

S

(Isaiah 10:20) In that day the remnant of Israel and the survivors of the house of Jacob will no more lean on him who struck them, but will lean on the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.

O

Biblically, a primary life-issue is deciding where we lean for support. People put their trust in their personal confidants (2 Kings 7:2, 17). Nations and rulers place their hopes in other nations and rulers (Isaiah 31:1). Saul tried to lean on the point of his spear in hope of escaping his fears (2 Samuel 1:6). We were created to be dependent on others, but as Isaiah said, survivors of difficulties learn that anything we lean on--except the Lord--will eventually "strike us." It's a dark outlook, except for the few who learn to live in community while leaning on the Lord for truth.

A (Personal)

How do I live in healthy community with broken people? How do I exclusively and safely trust the Lord? Jeremiah answered that and he was quoted in Hebrews 8:10-12: (1) covenant with God on His terms, (2) let God put His laws in my mind and heart, (3) identify myself as God's, (4) teach others to lean on Him above all others and to know Him, and (5) abandon my sins to God's "box" of all that He's forgiven.

A (Psychological)

Nancy Clark, a PNW counselor who's helped many people abandon unhealthy and distorted views of family life, created a clever metaphor about people who repeatedly trust seriously broken people. Many of her clients and students had insisted on remaining in abusive relationships with alcoholic or violent men, hoping that they would be able to change them or that they would "really keep their promises this time." She equated that to going to Radio Shack over and over and insisting on buying fresh bread from them--but in truth, it's simply not available there, it never will be. One of the hardest and least successful works of psychology is helping people abandon self-destructive ideas and behaviors.

P

Lord, I want to be one of the survivors, one of the remnant who leans on You in truth. I covenant myself to trust You with all my heart, to not lean on my own understanding, to acknowledge You in all my ways, and to let You make my paths straight, even if You see that I need serious reproof along with Your comforts and guidance (Proverbs 3:5, 6, 11, 12).

The Dust of Hope

S
(Psalm 102:14) For Your servants hold her [Zion's] stones dear and have pity on her dust.

O
Scholars usually see this psalm as having been written by one who was observing or remembering the destruction of the Temple. The stones that once easily evidenced God's beauty and goodness and glory were now broken and discarded in hideous piles, covered with the dust of disuse. But love resists abandonment. Love ("holding dear" and "pitying") creates value and purpose. And God's love makes possible the rebuilding of glory.

A (Personal)
I, too, can look with despair on the damage that sin delivers, even upon the people who once magnificently displayed God's glory. I choose, instead of joining the haters and mockers, to hold dear these once-living souls. I choose to become a "living stone" that Jesus uses to build His spiritual home (1 Peter 2:5) even though I, too, was once discarded, useless dust (Matthew 27:7; Jeremiah 18:1-10; Matthew 16:13-27).

A (Psychological)

Carl Rogers (Prochaska & Norcross, 2003) wrote that within the therapeutic relationship, six necessary and sufficient conditions could produce constructive personality changes. These are (1) relationship, (2) vulnerability, (3) genuineness, (4) unconditional positive regard, (5) accurate empathy, and (6) perception of genuineness. These conditions, also imbedded in this psalm, are consistently echoed themes of the Bible. This psalmist continued: "For the Lord builds up Zion; He appears in His glory; He regards the prayer of the destitute ... so that a people yet to be created may praise the Lord: He looked down from His holy height ... to hear the groans of the prisoners, to set free those who were doomed to die ... that they may praise His name" (vv 16-22).

P
Dear Creator and Lord, You see order and design where I see chaos. I fear that often You find vanity in what I value, and purpose in what I find disgusting. Help me to set my heart aright so I align with the good You are doing. Help me to hold dear what You value, to pity what You pity--give me a "whosoever" heart that aches for the wholeness of others.

Introducing My Friend, Word

S

(2 Timothy 3:16,17) All Scripture is inspired by God and useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work (NRSV).

O

Paul, taking his final "steps" towards his execution, wrote this to his beloved and often timid Timothy. Here, he revealed the reliable, tested truths that had helped him succeed despite ever worsening persecutions, an encyclopedia of sufferings, great evils, and great deceptions. Paul's never-failing help was letting the whole of God's Word inform his relationship with salvation through Christ Jesus. God's Word taught him how to do all things well.

A (Personal)

I want to hide God's Word in my heart (mind, will, desires) so I keep my behaviors purely good and my goals (both short- and long-term) ever before me (and on the right path). By giving opportunity for God's Words to echo in my heart as I go through each day's business, I can avoid offending God and harming people ... and avoid missing the good that God has arranged for me (Psalm 119:9-24).

A (Psychological)

One concept of Narrative Therapy is to externalize problems, giving problems an anthropomorphic identity. Thus, depression becomes something outside of and distinct from one's true self, and it's referred to as though it were a separate person or object (e.g., "Depression snuck into my bedroom and chided me before I fell asleep"). Similarly, Kristin Wright (Journal of Marital and Family Therapy. Oct 2003, 29(4), pp. 439-454) wrote of six relationships people have with death. These concepts help us understand how the relationship people have with God's written Word--the Holy Bible--greatly affects its impact (or lack of impact) on their lives. Paul's assertion, I believe, is that more than storing a wealth of accumulated wisdom, it is the medium through which God's Spirit speaks to us, not as a human anthropomorphic construction but as an actual divine interpolation into our neurological paths. These "overtones" may just have a real, external source...God!

P

Lord, I love Your voice! The more I'm in Your Word--and the more I'm open to actually hearing Your thoughts as I read--the more You heal and direct and teach and comfort me. How I love You!

New Clothes!

S

(1 Timothy 2:8-10) I desire that in every place the men should pray, lifting holy hands without anger or quarreling; likewise also that women should adorn themselves in respectable apparel, with modesty and self-control ... with good works.

O

"Likewise" is a key word here: what God said (through Paul) to one sex applied equally to the other sex. The Holy Spirit longs to adorn each of us in beautiful, practical clothes. He uses a clothes metaphor to describe His longing to beautify us through His well-designed, good works: our works, like good clothes, should be respectable (our inner goodness fits well and is obvious to observers). They should also be modest (we value goodness because it is good, regardless of whether we or others always meet that standard).

A (Personal)

I love clothes that fit well, that comfort and protect my body, that are appropriate for whatever my present activity is. The right clothes make me feel good whether I'm hiking, swimming, working, or sleeping. So, too, doing good, comforting others, choosing the right thing--all of that makes me feel good and look good (at least to people with good discernment).

A (Psychological)

Adlerian goals of psychotherapy is intended to help clients redirect their naturally selfish, self-absorbed and compensatory strivings and goals toward socially useful, self-enhancing values. Prochaska and Norcross describe it this way: "The paradox of self esteem is that it vanishes as a problem when people are encouraged to forget themselves and begin living for others. A solid sense of self-esteem can be created only by creating a style of life that is of value to the world. Live a life that affirms the value of fellow human beings, and the unintended consequence will be the creation of a self that is worthy of the highest esteem. Those who would be free from pathology must have the strength to carry the double burden of both personal and social responsibility" (Systems of Psychotherapy: A Transtheoretical Analysis. 2003. pp. 76-77).

P

Lord, I'd never thought of You as my tailor, but the wardrobe You give me each day fits me perfectly. Each piece is awesome! Not only am I perfectly outfitted, they work together to help me look like You: gracious, merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love. Thank You! (Joel 2:13; Revelation 19:8; Isaiah 61:10; Ephesians 6:10; Psalms 93:1; 104:1; 132:9,18).

Faith at Home

S

(1 Timothy 2:15) Yet she will be saved through childbearing--if they continue in faith and love and holiness with self-control.

O

This verse links our first redemptive prophecy (Genesis 3:15--I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel"), the church's victories over hell's attacks (Romans 16:20), and Christ's advent and ultimate eradication of all evil (Galatians 4:4; Ephesians 1:22,23). Note the important transition from Paul's reference to Eve ("she") to God's family of the both the daughters of Even and the sons of Adam ("they"). In this verse, too, we see our mandate for "Faith at Home." In our homes rests the literal salvation of the human race--males and females. In a humble home came the apex of humanity--the only begotten Son of God, as well as Christ's co-champion, the Church, which is His family.

A (Personal)

The responsibility of producing and equipping the next generation for godliness is of overwhelming urgency. And this verse captures the simplicity and joy of that task. Adam Clarke said it well: "Without faith, it is impossible to please God, or to be saved; and without love, it is impossible to obey. Faith and love are essentially necessary to holiness and self-control; and unless both men and women live in these, they cannot, Scripturally, expect to dwell with God forever."

A (Psychological)

Perhaps there are very few Bible verses so caustic to our culture as this, especially when it is misconstrued as being misogynous. Perhaps this verse and such discussions pertain exclusively to the realms of spirituality, not psychology. Perhaps. So I'll reframe the issue. The box that contains spiritual issues is so big and relevant that I cannot think of any issue that does not rightly belong in it. Psychology, with all of its elements and schemata, rather than being aloof and apart from this discussion, is but one strand of insight that contributes to these larger spiritual issues. Psychology finds its rest and cohesiveness only "under Christ's feet" (Ephesians 1:22).

P

Lord God, in Eden, You told my first parents of the long strife Satan's seed would have against each generation of people. I can only vaguely view my role in this struggle, but I see enough to know that I am responsible for helping the next generation to trust You, to love You, to yield themselves purely to You, and to govern their lives accordingly. I commit myself afresh to do that today.

Above the Sickened Swamp

S

(Colossians 3:1,2) If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above.... Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.

O

Having seen both the Lord and heaven numerous times (2 Corinthians 12:1-10), Paul's thought processes and content was forever changed. His message to us from Jesus is that we can begin to experience heavenly life--even in the darkened spiritual pollution of earth. He's saying our brains can begin to experience heaven before our spirits and resurrected bodies get there.

A (Personal)

I've often wondered how long I'd have survived in Eden without eating the forbidden fruit. Now I can find out: God has told me where I should occupy my thought life, where I should fence it in so it can thrive and roam without hurting others. And once I get to heaven, I won't have to fear being hurt by others who live outside, where immoralities, greed, and malice roam freely.

A (Psychological)

Repairing damaged thought-lives is the central task of our key psychological models: REBT, CBT, ACT, Narrative, DBT, Positive Psychology, etc. In their classic book In Quest of the Mythical Mate, Bader and Pearson suggest a 30-day plan for helping couples reprogram their thoughts and responses to each other (p. 181-185 ... I can send you a hard copy of this worksheet). By projecting their imaginations into carefully planned agreements about how they would prefer to live, many couples have successfully shifted their thoughts and behaviors from positive fantasy to positive reality. Evidently, where we park and exercise our imaginations is very important to our mental and social health.

P

O Jesus! How I long for heaven! Forgive my for sometimes sending my thoughts into errant and unheavenly swamps. There, Your clear voice is drowned by unhappy moaning and whining. Oh, how I love Your voice!

Bad Means = Bad End

S

(Leviticus 10:1,2) Now Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censor and put fire in it and laid incense on it and offered unauthorized fire before the Lord ... and fire came out from before the Lord ... and they died before the Lord.

O

Presumably, this could have been the best day of Aaron's life because he and his sons were dedicating the tabernacle. Instead, his sons did the right thing in the wrong way, and died for it. Details do matter, motives matter, and goals matter. As priests, Nadab, Abihu, and Aaron were leaders, and sin in leadership is especially serious (we're all leaders for some seasons). Sin in leadership produces sin in people. Whether their carelessness was born from indifference or drunkenness (as the text suggests), God knew that far worse activities were sure to follow.

A (Personal)

This reminds me that the end, even if the goal is good, is never accomplished with the assistance of wrong means. The freedom of truth can never be established by lies, just as purity can never be achieved through increasing corruption. After this, Aaron and his two remaining sons, Ithamar and Eleazar, might have cowered from God's call, but in the end of this chapter, we see that whenever it is remotely possible, even when deviating from God's commands, God chooses mercy and grace over judgment (James 5:20; 1 Peter 4:1-8).

A (Psychological)

Our profession is governed by ethical guidelines that are specific, objective, rigid, and clear. And violating these could cost mental health workers their professional standing, not to mention the possibility that violations could cause harm to clients and the community. In contrast to this, when joining with clients and seeking to understand their unique and often irrational or unethical thought processes, we need to remember that behind our good listening and joining skills, we must remember for our clients, too, there exist ethical, spiritual, and social guidelines that are specific, objective, rigid, and clear for them too, even if they don't perceive or believe them. Part of our "do no harm" work is to help clients interact safely with the real guidelines that indeed govern all of us as well.

P

Lord, search me and know me. See if there are any wicked motives or corrupt expediencies in my life. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit. I choose to worship You in Spirit and in truth instead of being intoxicated with my own ambitions. Thank You for delivering us from even the fear of death.

Slippery Snipes

S

(Psalm 15:1,3) O Lord, who shall [travel and reside with You]? He who ... does not slander with his tongue and does no evil to his neighbor nor takes up a reproach against his friend.

O

Slander is one of the trademark practices of Satan, our adversary and accuser. That word means spying for the sake of finding excuses to accuse and oppose. Scripture also describes slander as being smooth and slippery. It's alluring. It's easy. It's like a delicious drink that glides gently through one's mouth. And it's wrong.

A (personal)

This harmful talk seems like trying to grip a greased handrail: it promises to promote justice and stability but ends up eventually toppling the slanderer (verse 5). When I'm tempted to slander or accuse or reproach someone--regardless of how truthful it seems at first--I'll try to imagine being that person's advocate instead. That'll probably move me to intercessory and effective prayer (1 John 3:22-24).

A (psychological)

In conjoint or family counseling, the clients have come to you probobably because of some grievance they have with each other. It's very important to join with each member of the family system. But te challenge is to empathize and to respect each perspective but to do that without colluding, without--perhaps because of countertransference. Doing that would be to participate in one person's accusations against another. Holding opposing perspectives and complaints in honesty and safety is the work of love, the path through this slippery slope.

P

Savior, thank You that even when my adversary fairly accused me, You still loved me and were my advocate. I would much prefer to be like You. Please help me to excel in advocating for all people in my life, especially those whom the adversary tries to bribe me to target. I don't want to be his messenger ... I want to be Yours.