I am struck by this sledgehammer of words that careened off the page in the direction of my heart:
Thank you, Father; I rather needed that.
So much so I find myself praying Manning’s closing chapter prayer aloud (and might again a time or two before it’s over):
Lord Jesus, we are silly sheep who have dared to stand before You and try to bribe You with our preposterous portfolios. Suddenly we have come to our senses. We are sorry and ask You to forgive us. Give us the grace to admit we are ragamuffins, to embrace our brokenness, to celebrate Your mercy when we are at our weakest, to rely on Your mercy no matter what we may do. Dear Jesus, gift us to stop grandstanding and trying to get attention, to do the truth quietly without display, to let the dishonesties in our lives fade away, to accept our limitations, to cling to the gospel of grace, and to delight in Your love. Amen.
—Brennan Manning, The Ragamuffin Gospel, p144
Amen, indeed.
It’s easy to point fingers at the collective church and say, “The problem with the American Church today is…” and leave ourselves entirely non-mea-culpa. We would do well to remember a Chesterton take on the subject:
When the The Times of London posed this question to several prominent authors: “What’s wrong with the world today?” well-known author and philosopher G.K. Chesterton is said to have responded with a one-sentence essay:
The noonday devil tempts us to pretend we are an Instagram version of ourselves. And be okay with it.
I’ve learned much at the feet of David Pawson, now with the Lord. At one point in his ministry, rumors had been spread about the Bible teacher and speaking engagements were summarily cancelled.
Pawson was up in arms over the whole ordeal and complained vigorously to his wife. She told him to go the the Lord. He did. The Holy Spirit’s say in the matter was: “David, the worst they can say about you is not as bad as the truth.” He laughed. But the point was taken, with God adding, “I know the worst, but I still love you and will use you.”
That truth stuck with Pawson the remainder of his years. He even titled his autobiography, “Not As Bad As The Truth.”
As I once heard said, if our bosom sins were written on our forehead for all to see, most of us would be inclined to wear broad-brimmed hats everywhere we go.
Mr. Moody of Chicago once heralded,
“What we want is to be real. Let us not appear to be more than we are. Don’t let us put on any cant, any assumed humility, but let us be real; that is the delight of God. God wants us to be real men and women, and if we profess to be what we are not, God knows all about us. God hates sham.”
—Dwight Lyman Moody
Did you catch that? “…but let us be real; that is the delight of God.” It would seem the Father is waiting for us to shed the act and embrace the truth. For our own good.
In this selfie culture fascinated with filters, it might just be a sign of maturity to put ourselves out there completely unadorned by the deceptive magic of sham and confess to our ‘followers,’ “This is me. I am dark but lovely. I’m out here tending to vineyards but I’ve been neglecting my own.”
Why must we either surreptitiously rumor ourselves as the hero of our stories or manipulate public acclaim by using the tool of fake humility? Neither is the truth. Somewhere in the middle is true and honest. “Jesus is the hero of my story and I am his humble servant.” And mean it.
Back to Manning. One of the things I love about him is how he completely got over trying to impress (or as close to it as anyone I know). There is such a down-to-earth honesty in his oeuvre, as if he had been there, done that, and was so sick and tired of the whole nasty business of mask-wearing.
Are we prepared to live in community (and before the world) with this premium grade honesty?
Rich Villodas rightly observed, “Evangelical Christianity is often characterized by a deep desire to have ‘Christianity’ pervade our culture but not have Christ permeate our being.”
It may seem an odd thing, but I believe the world would sit up and take notice of this brand of being the church when we the saved are more known as image-bearers of Christ and to an infinitely less degree, image-protectors of self.
It’s high time we exorcised some demons. You know the kind: those “all-dressed-up-in-church-clothes“ demons who offer us phony piety at a discount price. I’m beginning to think they’re among the ones who come out only by prayer and fasting.
Just so you know, whatever you think of me, I can assure you it’s not as bad (or nearly as good?) as the truth. But this I know: God loves me in spite of it and it does me no good to pretend. How many would be spared a devastating fall from grace if they had preemptively confessed their sin to another?
Anyway, that’s what’s on my mind today.
Selah, beloved. (And you are.)
I would be so blessed if you would share me with your online communities! Thank you!
That’s a WORD, my friend. That passage was earlier in the original draft but not in the post. I suppose the Lord wanted you to call our attention to it.
This is so good and a bit painful. Heidi Baker is having a similar impact on me. Her words hurt but they feel so good. This is the kind of encouragement that breathes life. Thank you!
My dear sister, I am profoundly humbled to hear you say these words. This gratifies me to no end! You are and always will remain a kind blessing to my heart.
Oh, how I miss being your weekly pastor/shepherd! We grew up a lot together in those years, dear one. You’re never far from my thoughts, so help me. God cover you with his soft feathers and sing over you with his words of life.
As you well know the drill, that word trampled all over my toes before God released it to others. Thank you for reading my brother. You are an honorable friend.
Thanks so much for visiting! Please join me again at the table of grace soon 🙂
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Luke 18:14
That’s a WORD, my friend. That passage was earlier in the original draft but not in the post. I suppose the Lord wanted you to call our attention to it.
This is so good and a bit painful. Heidi Baker is having a similar impact on me. Her words hurt but they feel so good. This is the kind of encouragement that breathes life. Thank you!
My dear sister, I am profoundly humbled to hear you say these words. This gratifies me to no end! You are and always will remain a kind blessing to my heart.
Sure do miss you and I miss your sermons that prick my heart and my conscience. This was one of them. Thank you my friend.
Oh, how I miss being your weekly pastor/shepherd! We grew up a lot together in those years, dear one. You’re never far from my thoughts, so help me. God cover you with his soft feathers and sing over you with his words of life.
Thank you Scott. Such a vital word for us…me.
As you well know the drill, that word trampled all over my toes before God released it to others. Thank you for reading my brother. You are an honorable friend.
OUCH… in such a great way! Lord, give us… give me… the courage to accept and reflect REAL!!
A necessary prayer for us, Kelli! Thank you for offering up this worthy benediction!