Lay Down Your Independence

Posted on July 8, 2015 by Carl Simmons

(and no, the timing of this has nothing to do with the holiday… :))

We spent a lot of time the last several weeks addressing our feelings toward those who’ve opposed and hurt us. Therefore we’re going start this week, and this new sub-series, by widening our net ever-so-slightly to include one more enemy—you.

All of us have been God’s enemies, and I’m not just talking in a positional, “before we were born again” sense. I’m talking experientially. Like earlier today. Like maybe even right now.

We habitually assert our “in-dependence from” God. Every time we take matters into our own hands, we very deliberately—and however unwittingly—separate ourselves from God and set up our own little kingdoms. For all practical purposes, we’re declaring ourselves his enemies in those matters. Our very actions declare, “God, I just don’t trust you.” We might well come slinking back in repentance later, with spiritual hat in hand—but that’s later.

I don’t say this with the intention of beating anyone up. Nonetheless, we operate in this manner a whole lot more than we’re willing to admit. And yet Jesus continues to love us even when we oppose him, directly or indirectly. This is why he can so authoritatively command us, “Love your enemies, and pray for them who persecute you.” He not only lived this out during his time on earth, but has been confronting our opposition since the garden of Eden—and since his resurrection as well.

Think about how you feel when a loved one is hurt or threatened. Jesus feels that way about each of us, especially those within his church. He’s just as offended, if not more so, when those who seek to hurt his people are those within the church.

Our offenses might not be as egregious as the ones committed by those people—you know: the ones you just thought of instead of yourself—but we’re not innocent here either. We too oppose Jesus far too often. We assert our own identity apart from him because, well again, we just don’t trust him. And by the same token, we withhold love from others because we don’t trust them either—because we believe our offerings will be rejected or discarded.

Jesus says: That’s not the point. The point is: Do you trust me enough to lay down your independence and follow me—and therefore, obey me?

We need to love the enemy known as us, just as Jesus does. After all, who needs love more than someone who clearly doesn’t have any love?

One more thing: Laying down our independence isn’t only about letting Jesus in, but about letting others in—to run the risk of incurring enemies, to run the risk of even good people opposing your good plans. And then, love them anyway. The people in front of Jesus weren’t obstacles in his path—they were his path. We’re called to follow that path.

You were never in this alone. You never will be, no matter how much you choose to live as if you were. So lay down your independence, let go of your own little kingdom, and become the person Jesus calls you to be.

Lay It Down Today

Who are your “enemies” right now? Broaden your definition as far as you need to—or, point the finger back at yourself. Don’t only focus on those who’ve hurt you—hopefully, you dealt with a lot of that last week—or those who obviously oppose the gospel. Who’s “in your way” right now? Who’s standing between you and what you want? How is Jesus calling you to respond to them in love, instead of responding to how they’re opposing you?

Confess your insistence on your own way—the way you’ve treated God like an enemy—and ask him to help you release it. Ask to receive his love and for the ability to extend it to others, particularly those you’ve just named. Then, take the steps you need to express that love tangibly—and again, possibly to yourself as well. Trust God to be there when you do.

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Lay Down Your Baggage: a small-group session

Posted on July 1, 2015 by Carl Simmons

For this session, you’ll need….

  • a large suitcaseoverstuffed-suitcase1
  • a variety of items—at least one per person. Include a Bible, as well as several of the following:
    • work-related items, such as a stapler or even a laptop computer
    • family-related items, such as a photo album
    • items representing personal interests, such as a football, book, backpack, musical instrument or baking pan. The heavier the item, the better—but make sure it fits in your suitcase.

Find an area where you can spread out all your items (and your group members, once this activity starts). Put out all your items before your group arrives.

Laying Down Your Day (20 minutes)

Have group members get into subgroups of three or four.

Take a few minutes to talk about your “Lay It Down Today” assignments this “week” (see Lay Down What’s Done / Lay Down Your Hurt/Bitterness/Addictions/Idols). Which did you find most useful or interesting? Which ones were more difficult or hard to connect with? In each case, why? Talk about it, and we’ll come back together in about five minutes.

After five minutes, bring everyone back together. Take them to the area where you’ve placed all the items from your supply list.

The items here are meant to represent different interests and priorities each of you have—God, work, family, hobbies. So let’s take turns here. Grab an item that represents an interest or priority of yours, and place it inside the suitcase.

Let everyone take a turn loading items into the suitcase. If you have more than one item per person, let everyone have another turn. Load your suitcase up, but be sure you can close it. Once your suitcase is fully packed, say something like, Let’s see how easy it is to carry all this stuff from our lives around.

Take about 10 seconds to pick up and hold your suitcase, and then pass it on to the next person to hold. Let everyone have a turn—and don’t let your suitcase hit the floor until everyone’s had a turn. Afterward, sit back down and discuss these questions:

  1. We’ve spent a lot of time this week looking at our need to “lay down our baggage.” Even though we loaded it with mostly good things, how is our suitcase like the baggage you’re carrying in your life right now?
  2. How relieved were you to hand your baggage to someone else? What does that tell you about the need to let go—and the importance of helping others to let go?
  1. What does it also tell you about the dangers of putting all our baggage on others?

We all have our “stuff.” Some of it—like the items in our suitcase—isn’t all bad, but has taken too much priority in our lives. But as we’ve read this week, we still carry around a lot of baggage from our past, and while we may have moved on from it we’ve never really let go of it. We still carry it around, and it still holds us back from fully becoming who we were meant to be in Christ. So let’s dig deeper into this.

Laying Down the Word (25 minutes)

Have someone read the following excerpt from “Lay Down What’s Done.” Then, discuss the question that follows.

Our experiences, to a large degree, have made us who we are. But we are more than our experiences, let alone our negative ones. There’s a life in Christ waiting for us that goes beyond what we would limit ourselves to. “Laying down what’s done” doesn’t mean we forget the things in our past. And it certainly doesn’t mean we stop feeling anything when they come to mind, although hopefully we learn to move on more quickly. It does mean that we no longer allow ourselves to own those things, and that we no longer allow them to own us.

  1. In what ways do you still find yourself defined by the negative experiences in your past? What positive things have nonetheless come out of those experiences?

Ask for another volunteer to read the following excerpt from “Lay Down Your Bitterness.” Then, discuss the questions that follow.

When we refuse to forgive, we keep others in bondage. Jesus says it: ‘Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven’ (Matthew 18:18). Forgiveness, or the lack thereof, has that kind of power. By believing that we need—deserve—to be repaid for the wrongs done to us, we become, in a very real sense, spiritual slave owners. We accuse others of evil—then, instead of freeing them from it, leave them trapped in it. Are those the kind of people we want to be?…

In short: You don’t get to hold onto your hurt. You don’t get to allow it to fester into bitterness. You don’t get to hold it over their heads. Let me handle it. You, lay it down.

  1. How does our unforgiveness reveal a lack of trust in God?
  1. How does giving your hurts and bitterness over to God release both you and those who’ve wronged you from the bondage of unforgiveness? Share a personal example, if you can.

Have a volunteer read the following excerpt from “Lay Down Your Addictions,” and then have another volunteer read Hebrews 2:14–15, 18. Discuss the questions that follow.

[A]ll of our addictions—all of our sin, really—is a response to the gnawing sense we have, deep down, that God doesn’t really want what best for us. That God’s will comes at his whim, and at our expense. That we, the created ones, somehow don’t owe everything we have to the Creator in the first place.

  1. Whether it’s unforgiveness, caving into an addiction, or any other baggage we carry—what power do you think sin gives you, at the time you’re indulging it? Share as much as you’re comfortable.
  1. How does (or should) the fact that Jesus has “been there” help free us from those sins—and to release others as well?

 

Laying Down Your Life (15 minutes)

Discuss:

  1. What idols did you identify in your life as you read “Lay Down Your Idols”? (Review now, if necessary. It’s right below this post.) How do they connect with the baggage you’ve identified this week? In other words, how do your past hurts and your current idols feed one another?

Have a volunteer read John 5:2–15, then discuss:

  1. What are some reasons that we choose not to get well? How would (or did) Jesus respond to those excuses?
  1. Where are you not allowing Jesus to heal you right now—or where do you wish he would but instead you just feel stuck? In what ways might you still be resisting his healing?

Close by praying for your group—or, if you’re familiar enough with one another, pair off. Spend some time praying about your answers to question 11 (and 9 as well, if you have time). Ask God to overwhelm your lack of trust with his love, and to give you a heart that’s willing to lay down your baggage, so you’re willing to receive whatever God wants to give you in return.

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Lay Down Your Idols

Posted on June 24, 2015 by Carl Simmons

Today we finish our section on the past and begin moving into the present. But there are still some things in our way we need to push aside, so let’s spend today identifying and dealing with them.

We have been created for worship. Therefore, we will ultimately worship something, and very often it’s something less than God. Peter Kreeft, in Christianity for Modern Pagans, aptly points out, “The alternative to theism is not atheism but idolatry.” Even as Christians, the temptation to worship something in God’s creation—or of our own “creation,” for that matter—remains, and we often fall victim to it without even realizing.

If we’re willing to look closer, what we worship—read: what we place above us—is the person or thing we believe will give us the most pleasure or benefit. We may subjugate ourselves to it, but ultimately it’s still about us. So let’s frame the question this way: What do you let serve you, other than God? That’s your idol, or at least your potential idol.

Let me make this even easier, albeit in ascending order of emotional difficulty. By the time we’re done, this may feel more like a pile-on than simply moving from one category to the next, but that only means we’ve uncovered a big idol. So let’s….

Follow the money. Well, where does it go? For that matter, how much of your “essential” spending is essential? As you observe where your money goes, think about the feelings you have in relation to those “purchases.” What are you really trying to buy? Security, pleasure, reputation?

Follow your time. Same idea. Where’s your time going? And again, yes, some blocks of time are immovable or at least difficult to change. But where does your “down time” go? And do you need to spend that much time at work, or is it a choice? Either way, what’s motivating those choices?

Follow your tongue. Now it gets harder—first of all, because you actually have to listen to what comes out of your mouth. “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh” (Matthew 12:34, KJV). So, what does your abundance look like? Or to put it more bluntly: What are you full of? And why?

Follow your fear. What causes you anxiety? What makes you defensive? What do you find yourself unnaturally worried about? Don’t stop and justify it with, “Well, I have to, because….” Just answer the question. Then answer this one: What’s that fear telling you about what you truly value? What idol is lurking behind that fear, pulling the strings?

Follow this sentence to its ultimate conclusion: “My life is wasted unless I…” As you do this, take special note of that last little word. Because ultimately, all of this idol talk is about the I. We turn to our I-dols because we don’t believe that what God has for I is good enough. And yet, our own efforts leave us feeling even emptier—as if our lives have been wasted.

Here’s the thing: God doesn’t feel your life is a waste. Ever. You don’t have to fix it. Anything in your life that does need fixing is God’s responsibility—but we have to let him do the fixing, and cooperate with him as he does.

What’s more—and we’ll delve more into this in future weeks: Your life is a small speck in the face of eternity. Any “waste” that’s happened, or is happening now, is not only redeemable but nothing in the face of God’s glory. As you lay down the idols you’ve identified, God will take that “waste” and transform it into something that reflects his glory.

As we close this section on laying down your past, there’s probably no better way to do so than with Romans 8:1–2: “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.” The past is as done as you want it to be. God will use it as he sees fit—not to condemn you, but to transform you back into his image. So let’s lay down the things we worship aside from God, and let’s move into the present.

Lay It Down Today

Where did all that “following” lead you today? Now’s the time to lay those things down—literally, if possible.

For every idol you identified, try to find a physical item that represents it. Is it a home or car? Get out your keys. Money? Get out your wallet or purse. Reputation? Find an award or some other item.

Then, get on your knees before God. No, seriously, do it. Lay down each of these items before him. Confess how, and why, they’ve become idols in your life. Ask God to help you trust him, and to use these items for his glory instead of yours. Thank God that he is the one who’s truly worthy of your worship, and begin living into that reality.

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Lay Down Your Addiction

Posted on June 17, 2015 by Carl Simmons

Now that we’ve addressed the need to lay down the things we hold against others, let’s spend the rest of this week addressing the other side of our baggage—namely, the logs in our own eyes. Let’s begin today with the things we know we struggle with, and then drill down deeper tomorrow.

For today, I’m going to use a word we’ve come to compartmentalize—addiction—and show how pervasive this mindset really is in our lives. Let’s define addiction here as anything you need to get through the day that isn’t God. All of our addictions—all of our sin, really—is a response to the gnawing sense we have, deep down, that God doesn’t really want what’s best for us. That God’s will comes at his whim, and at our expense. That we, the created ones, somehow don’t owe everything we have to the Creator in the first place. There’s a reason that the acknowledgment of a higher power is part of any good recovery program, after all.

There’s another old-fashioned and equally overcompartmentalized word for what we’re talking about: lust. It doesn’t have to be the sexual kind (although it might well be). What lust in any form means, is: We want what we want and we want it now. And we keep on wanting it—because it wants us, too. That’s the power of lust, or addiction. We believe it will satisfy a need God can’t, or won’t.

But here’s the thing we forget: If God won’t satisfy it, it’s not really a need. We’re the ones who have elevated our desires to that status.

“God’s been duping you; God’s been duping you.” Satan has been using this trick from the very beginning, and it’s still probably his most effective. When we cease to trust God, we welcome the lusts of our own hearts. Yet, once we’ve regained our senses afterward, there’s a sense of heaviness, sadness, not totally unlike the feeling of a Sunday-morning hangover after a particularly long Saturday night. (And for some of you, it might be exactly like that.) Our overindulgence—our giving way to our compulsions—always has consequences, both physical and spiritual.

Jesus didn’t fall for Satan’s trick. He not only endured temptation, but he overcame temptations we were too weak to have Satan even bother to throw at us. Jesus knows the way out, because he’s been there. “Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery…. For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted” (Hebrews 2:14–15, 18).

Because Jesus went through temptation for us, came out the other side, and then paid the price for our own failure anyway, he is able to deliver us. “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it” (1 Corinthians 10:13).

It may not seem that way at first glance, but one of the most practical responses we can make to our addiction is to engage in spiritual disciplines such as prayer, Bible study, solitude, and worship. Here’s why: Instead of letting ourselves be carried away by every impulse that strikes us, such practices help us say to God, “I’m staying right here. I’m focusing on you. Help me to follow what you want.” To be clear, the disciplines aren’t a catch-all solution. In fact, they can become an addiction in themselves if we make them only about how holy we are or become anxious over “doing our duty.” Nonetheless, they are a declaration of intent, with the actions to back it up. They’re opportunities to take our misguided passions and guide them somewhere more useful.

As our focus becomes more and more about God, our compulsions melt away. Not that we’re never tempted again—or for that matter, might not stumble again—but we have a practical way to get up and dust ourselves off. Don’t overlook the importance of that. With that, let’s get to today’s assignment.

Lay It Down Today

We’re going to practice one spiritual discipline right now: Silence. Pulling ourselves away from the world helps us to hear God more clearly. It’s a way to remove ourselves from the constant compulsive flow of the world that draws us so easily into temptation and addiction. And, it’s a way of telling God (silently, of course) that he takes priority.

Psalm 46:10a is a pretty popular phrase we throw around for this: “Be still, and know that I am God.” (I’ve always liked rephrasing it, “Shut up—I’m God.”) I want you to start your time of silence by reading all of Psalm 46—because it’s all about trust, and the fact that God is worthy of our trust. Afterward, take at least ten minutes to close your eyes and be totally silent before God. Your mind will probably keep buzzing for at least the first few minutes. That’s OK. Give the buzzing time to die down. Let God speak, and quiet yourself down enough so that you can hear him. When you’re done, write down your thoughts.

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Lay Down Your Bitterness

Posted on June 10, 2015 by Carl Simmons

I had originally considered calling this entry “Lay Down Your Judgment” or “Lay Down Your Grudges.” Either would have worked, and I’ll touch upon them here. But I think the title I settled on captures both those ideas, and something more.

My atheist buddy Tim has an amusing-truth kind of song called “I Hate to Be Judgmental,” which begins, “I hate to be judgmental, but some people make me sick.” Later on, though, a larger truth comes up: “I hate to be judgmental, but there’s nothing else to do / Everybody’s judging me—why shouldn’t I judge you?” And it’s true; this judgment thing is an endless cycle. Getting worked up over someone else’s shortcomings is a pretty good time-killer that helps us feel better about ourselves.

Furthermore, it’s quite easy to extend this attitude to other Christians. I mean, we—and of course, by we, we mean they—should know better. They’re Christians, right? There’s certainly truth to that. But let’s remember, especially in a book dedicated to this premise, that all of us are still learning how to properly lay down our lives at Jesus’ feet.

Before we extend judgment, consider this: If Jesus is indeed the greatest thing, indeed the greatest person, in my life, shouldn’t that be true about every Christian I meet—and for that matter, every potential Christian? Shouldn’t I be looking for that movement of the Spirit in the other person, no matter (or especially given) what sin God calls them out of… and that Jesus already paid the price for?

When we refuse to forgive, we keep others in bondage. Jesus says it: “Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven” (Matthew 18:18). Forgiveness, or the lack thereof, has that kind of power. By believing that we need—deserve—to be repaid for the wrongs done to us, we become, in a very real sense, spiritual slave owners. We accuse others of evil—then, instead of freeing them from it, leave them trapped in it. Are those the kind of people we want to be?

Yet we all do it. I certainly do. And at the same time, I keep someone else locked up, too—me. Slaves still need to be fed and watched over, you know, no matter how much contempt we have for them. And we fearfully await the day they rise up in rebellion against us.

With all that in mind, let’s come back to last week’s “transgressor” thoughts and expand even further. Something else I’ve been noticing in the gospels, and I suspect you have, too: The people we’d normally think of as transgressors (or whatever word we’d substitute for that)—those who commit sins of some obvious type of self-indulgence—aren’t the people who truly anger Jesus. He doesn’t let them off the hook, but he also very openly offers his compassion to them. At the same time he calls them out on the carpet, he calls them to something better. He knows that these people are only trying to fill a void in their lives, however poorly or self-destructively. Thus, he points to himself and says, “I’m what you’re looking for. Lay down all the rest of it and come follow me.”

Thus, the people who truly anger Jesus are the victimizers—those who corrupt others, who take advantage of children, those who hurt and damage others, and especially those who do all this under a veneer of self-righteousness. These are the people Jesus takes on constantly, and who are subjected to his anger and pronouncements of judgment. Not surprisingly, it’s these people who ultimately condemn Jesus to death—enabling him to “be numbered with the transgressors.” And yet, how does Jesus tell us to respond?

“But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. To one who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from one who takes away your cloak do not withhold your tunic either. Give to everyone who begs from you, and from one who takes away your goods do not demand them back. And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them.

“If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount. But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful” (Luke 6:27–36).

In short: You don’t get to hold onto your hurt. You don’t get to allow it to fester into bitterness. You don’t get to hold it over their heads. Let Jesus handle it. You, lay it down.

Lay It Down Today

Today’s assignment is a two-parter:

1) Read 1 Peter 3–4. Take note of all the encouragements Peter offers us to live as Jesus told us. There’s a lot of them. Meditate on them. Pray over them.

2) Today’s reading has likely brought someone to mind—and it’s OK if it’s the same person who came up last week; that just proves you’re not done yet. Repeat the following sentence with that person’s name inserted. “Jesus forgave [name] just as he forgave me.” You may need to ask Jesus to give you a heart to truly forgive, to help you receive his forgiveness toward you, or both. So ask.

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Honey, If You’re Walking Wounded… Then You Really Oughta Get This.

Posted on June 8, 2015 by Carl Simmons

Weeks later, I’m still trying to put my finger on exactly what’s different about this album, and why the danged thing won’t get out of my rotation—as if that were a problem…. But you if (and its creator) can bear with me, I’m gonna try to flesh this puppy out a bit….

lands and peoplesBill Mallonee. Lands & Peoples. CD $20, vinyl $30, download $12.99. Whatever your medium: Go fetch.

And I’ll just say up front: If you’re looking for a more coherent and/or articulate review, head here or here. But if you’re interested in what I’m (trying to) think, stick around….

Perhaps it’s most accurate to say: Five years into his “Santa Fe period” (even though he’s up the road in Taos now), this album feels more “lived in” than the others so far from this period. It’s still a Bill album, and if you have any familiarity at all with his (especially recent) work you know what that means by now. (If not: Think Neil Young and the Byrds, with a zest of Woody Guthrie.)

Still, Lands & Peoples gives off a vibe that there’s a greater acceptance on Bill’s part of who he is and where he’s at. It’s self-aware without being self-conscious or self-promoting. He’s no longer highlighting his struggles for us, even as he’s taking full ownership of them. (Go read the liner notes for more evidence of this quasi-thesis.) Even the songs themselves seem to be synthesizing his influences more than jumping out at you this time ’round. He is what he is, whoever’s gonna notice or care pretty much already has, and therefore he can just getting on with being it. (Still, it usually works out that as we come to terms with ourselves, all those good things we kept demanding/expecting in the past finally happen. Here’s hoping—he’s more than overdue that.)

I’d still have to say that The Power and the Glory remains the best album from the “Santa Fe resurgence” so far; on the other hand, that one had the benefit of five years’ worth of demos to choose from (and when we talk Bill, we’re talking hundreds of songs). This one stands right alongside Amber Waves, though, especially in the little musical tweaks that happen along the way. So anyway, digging in those tweaks, here’re some of the things that jump out at me:

• Bill’s always been a master of self-contradiction, but he seems to have ramped up his game here: “No more dark clouds… at least for a little while”; “Look at all of the boom—look at all of the bust”; “There’s nothing like the past, to tell you who you are / There’s nothing like the present, to tell you who you aren’t”….

• There’s something about the chordage and the slightly strained singing of “Hide Me in the Darkness” that hits me every time. And it’s hard (for me, anyway) not to like a chorus that includes the lines, “Hide me in the darkness / There’s sure plenty to go around….”

• Something about the quiet, deliberate guitar chording on “String of Days” reminds me of Lou Reed during his own creative resurgence period of the ’80s-90s. Just sayin’.

• “Sangre de Christos” and “Hope the Kids Make It Out” are decidedly more upbeat than a lot of what else is here, so it’s hard not to perk up when they’re on. Muriah Rose’s backups and piano on the former bring the song to another level here as well. (And in the case of the latter, I can’t help thinking that he took that title phrase—used by any number of fellow 50something empty nesters—and turned it into something a tad more profound :)).

• The body of the quiet “Northern Lights and Southern Cross”  does a great job of evoking the “ghosts from the past making the rounds”—but then, you can actually hear those ghosts in the coda. One of those “you gotta hear it late at night to truly appreciate it” kinda things.

• The title song is Bill going “full Woody,” and after innumerable nods to Mr. Guthrie (and even more so, his at least spiritual compadre Mr. Steinbeck) over the years, it’s a joy to hear it sound so natural here. Again, that “lived in” thing.

• “I’ll Swing With Everything I’ve Got” is the elegy here, and as always brings the lyrics, and again a greater degree of self-acceptance: “On every page you will shine just like a star / And if that deck is stacked? / We’ll just laugh & leave the table / And leave the dealer all alone there in the dark.” Nice to hear Bill hit that high note at the end, too. (Likewise, props for the following “swing” song, “Swing It, Joe” and the line “Kingdoms rise & kingdoms fall / ‘tween happy hour & last call.”)

• And I’m not sure it whether it’s intentional or not, but play the closer “It All Turns to Dust” back-to-back with the opener “At Least for a Little While,” and tell me it doesn’t feel like the CD’s musically looping back to where it started as well… just a nice culmination.

So there we are, so far. Again, there’s just something a little different going on here—and a sense that something even better’s up the road. And maybe, just maybe, you can pitch in and help make that start to happen for the guy, too.

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Lay Down Your Hurt

Posted on June 3, 2015 by Carl Simmons

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the following passage: “He (Christ) was numbered with the transgressors” (Mark 15:28, cf. Isaiah 53:12). I believe that in our own way we too are called to be “numbered with the transgressors,” and that it’s a key to moving past our old life and into the life Christ intends for us.

Because… well, let’s start with a simple truth: We are among the transgressors.

This isn’t to dismiss or excuse some of the truly horrific sins that others perpetrate upon us or others; however, for the majority of us, most of our lives aren’t about those kinds of transgressions. They’re about responding to everyday hurts—insults, gossip, other inconsiderate acts—or even “bigger” but not necessarily deeper sins committed against us—deliberate acts where we’re deemed inferior or just not good enough, or slanderous words against our reputation. It’s also about responding to every person we meet and resisting the urge to judge and deem them not good enough, whether it’s for “good” reasons or for nonexistent ones we just came up with on the spot.

Even in more extreme cases, I think this idea of being numbered with the transgressors applies. Every so often, we’re surprised by a news story about an act of extreme forgiveness. Many of us think it can’t possibly be legitimate—that they’re just saying it but that they really still harbor anger or resentment. Or maybe we just resign ourselves to the idea that we’re incapable of that degree of forgiveness in the face of that kind of abuse or injustice. Fortunately, God knows both the good and the bad we’re capable of far better than we do. He will equip us to face those moments.

Jesus lived a perfect life and died for every one of those sins—even the ones committed against us. And he calls us to follow him and “be perfect” (Matthew 5:48), by learning how to die to those sins—and the hurt we’ve suffered from them as well.

When we allow ourselves to “be numbered with the transgressors”—that’s when God can work. I don’t mean sheepishly shrugging, “Yeah, I’m a sinner just like everyone else,” but looking straight at the people around you who carry sins that offend and maybe even repulse you, and admitting “These are my people, too; I really am like them except for Christ, and he chose to be numbered with them.” It means checking our pride and self-righteousness at the door. When we do, we are opened to the opportunity to overlook the sins of others—again, not excusing or denying them, but understanding they’re part of the same mess we’re in—truly forgiving them, and replacing our revulsion with compassion.

Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, in Aramaic called Bethesda, which has five roofed colonnades. In these lay a multitude of invalids—blind, lame, and paralyzed. One man was there who had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had already been there a long time, he said to him, “Do you want to be healed?” The sick man answered him, “Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, and while I am going another steps down before me.” Jesus said to him, “Get up, take up your bed, and walk.” And at once the man was healed, and he took up his bed and walked.

Now that day was the Sabbath. So the Jews said to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to take up your bed.” But he answered them, “The man who healed me, that man said to me, ‘Take up your bed, and walk.’” They asked him, “Who is the man who said to you, ‘Take up your bed and walk’?” Now the man who had been healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, as there was a crowd in the place. Afterward Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, “See, you are well! Sin no more, that nothing worse may happen to you.” The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had healed him (John 5:2–15).

You might be wondering, “What’s the connection between this passage and what you were just saying?” But do you notice something in this story? No-one’s terribly motivated for this guy to get well—including the man himself. But Jesus is.

This scenario seems to run counter to the conventional wisdom around us. However, this is how we really are, both in terms of ourselves and those around us. We’d rather read a self-help book and feel healed, than actually be healed. We’d rather stick with the status quo, no matter how much it actually hurts, than encounter the fear of the unknown that comes with truly being healed—or in seeing other “invalids” in our lives healed. We’re a lot more like these nitpicky Pharisees than we’d like to admit.

Jesus asks the invalid at the pool, “What do you want me to do? Do you want me to heal you?” Think about this in terms of your own “internal injuries.” Would you rather identify yourself by your hurt, your blindness—say it: your willfulness in withholding forgiveness—or would you rather get on with your undiscovered future, by growing into your new life and identity in Christ?

The beginning of healing is admitting you’re hurt. That’s true of your internal state, and it’s just as true about all the broken relationships around you. So lay down your hurt. Take Jesus’ yoke. Be numbered with the transgressors. You’ll start to see them differently. And more importantly, you’ll let Jesus bring healing and grace to you—and them.

Lay It Down Today

I’ll keep this simple: Where do you need to be “numbered with the transgressors” today? Is it an act of forgiveness? Is it treating some “weird” or annoying person you avoid with the same dignity you’d want? Does it involve reaching out somehow to the more marginalized of society—not just by being charitable but by being present and available?

You know what you felt as you read today’s entry, so I won’t get in the way of what God wants to do with it. But start making it happen today. Respond to what God’s trying to tell you.

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Lay Down What’s Done

Posted on May 27, 2015 by Carl Simmons

Last week was about you receiving forgiveness. This week, it’s about you extending it—to others, and ultimately to yourself as well. So yes, this week we’re still more focused on the “negative” pieces of our lives, but the bigger focus is on finding our way past those pieces.

So let’s pick up where we left off. This time, though, rather than dwelling on the things that have caused us deep shame—and for now, the need to forgive others in those areas—let’s go broad instead of deep. Let’s explore the width and breadth of all those “little” things from our past that nonetheless work together to hold us back from believing in God’s best for us.

And let’s start here: The person least immune to all of this is me. As I warned in the introduction to this book, by laying out all these issues before you, I’m also taking a buzzsaw to the undergrowth in my own life.

As I finished the previous devotion (“Lay Down Your Shame”), I was confronted by my own accusations—not by shame, but by all the negative things in my past that I nevertheless allow to define me. To be sure, some of my counter-reactions to those negative things have had some very positive results. You’re reading one of them right now. For that matter, I spent three years writing a six-book bible-study series that was very much a counter-reaction to some decidedly negative circumstances in my life at the time (“I’ll show you what discipleship looks like!”). And as I reflect upon it now, my counter-reaction to my childhood is what gave me the determination that my marriage and the way our children were raised would be different—and they were.

Yet, there’s a part of me—no doubt bigger than I realize even now—that spends an inordinate amount of time identifying myself against those negative things in the past that I’m not. Seeing this in other people’s lives—and I think it’s even truer for those trapped by shame—I observe what I like to call a “spiritual Stockholm Syndrome.” That is, the penchant to identify ourselves with—and perhaps excuse but not truly forgive—those who have hurt us deeply.

I, too, am often just as trapped by it.

Our experiences, to a large degree, have made us who we are. But we are more than our experiences, let alone our negative ones. There’s a life in Christ waiting for us that goes beyond what we would limit ourselves to. “Laying down what’s done” doesn’t mean we forget the things in our past. And it certainly doesn’t mean we stop feeling anything when they come to mind, although hopefully we learn to move on more quickly. It does mean that we no longer allow ourselves to own those things, and that we no longer allow them to own us.

God can use the things of our past to create something far better than the prison those things have often become for us. (That goes for positive things as well; we’ll spend more time there in future weeks.) Very often, as we share how God has changed us in those areas, God brings deliverance and transformation to others—as well as through our vulnerability in confessing our willingness to be changed, as we continue to work through those issues.

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them (Ephesians 2:10).

Let’s face it: We’re all “pieces of work” in some way. And yet, all of us are also works in progress. By being willing to lay down our baggage, we give God full permission to get on with the work he’s prepared us for since the day we were created. And we might be surprised by how far-reaching that work will become.

Lay It Down Today

1) Take a chunk of time right now to think about how God has transformed one or more areas of your life. Thank God for the changes he’s already brought about through that.

2) Perhaps this devotional has stirred up something you’d really thought/hoped you’d moved on from, but where God needs to do an even deeper work. Spend some time giving that issue up to God. Allow him to transform it into what he wants.

3) Either way, think about this: How could sharing about your past enable someone else to get past theirs? If someone came to mind, make time to share with that person. Remember: If something truly required—or requires, if you and God are dealing with it right now—God’s intervention, it’s already important. That’s enough. So look for an opportunity to let God speak through your life, and let God take it from there.

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Lay Down Your Old Life: a small-group session

Posted on May 20, 2015 by Carl Simmons

Have everyone take their shoes off before entering your meeting area. If this is your first time together, ask group members to introduce themselves and share what they’re each hoping to get out of this study. (You can ask this second part even if you’ve been together for years.) Then dive into your discussion time (leaderspeak is in itals):

We all bring a lot to this group, so let’s begin our time together by recognizing that—by sharing a little about where God has already taken each of us. As you came in today, you took off your shoes—because every place we encounter God is holy. We want our time together to reflect that, because we too are gathering before God. Turn to a partner and take about five minutes to discuss this question:

  1. What’s your holy ground—in other words, the places where you know you’ve encountered God? How have you been changed by those encounters?

After five minutes, regain everyone’s attention. Ask for a few volunteers to share their experiences.

What you’ve just shared is one of the most significant things you’ll ever share in this life. We’re preparing for an eternity with Christ, and our encounters with God give us a small taste of what’s to come—and help others see and taste it, too. What’s more, those encounters change us and prepare us for that eternal life. We have a new identity in Christ, right now. This week has been about laying down our old identity so we can put our new one on. Let’s begin exploring that together.

Ask for a volunteer to read Romans 12:1–2.

  1. Practically speaking, what does it mean to be a “living sacrifice”?
  1. How does that transform us so we can know God’s “good and pleasing and perfect” will—and actually do it?

Have someone read the following excerpt, then discuss the question that follows.

[W]hen we talk about laying down your sin, it’s not just, “Hey you, stop doing things God says are wrong.”… It’s also laying down the sin you want to openly express but don’t. It’s laying down the sin that has been expressed upon you, by others—even the sin that hasn’t been expressed but you know is there. It’s saying Jesus died for all of it, and beginning to live in that truth.

  1. Which sins are harder for you to lay down: the ones you commit outwardly, the ones you want to commit outwardly but don’t, the ones committed upon you, or the sins you just know are out there waiting to get you? Why?

Ask someone to read Galatians 2:20–21, then discuss:

  1. What holds us back from living like this is really true?
  1. What things or actions do we tend to substitute for living by faith? How do those things reveal how we’re depending on ourselves instead of Christ?

Thanks for your willingness to share so far today. These are tough questions, especially for a first session, but no-one ever said dying to self would be easy. The fact is, it’s a process. It’s something we have to do each day. As we lay down the “obvious” stuff in our lives, God brings up even deeper things to us—and we’ll need to lay those down, too. Don’t feel bad if the answers come too easily—and don’t feel superior if they haven’t, because your time’s coming. So let’s move forward, by re-opening a “case study” from our last entry.

Have a couple volunteers read Luke 5:1–11 and John 21:4–7. Then discuss:

  1. Which version of Peter do you identify with more right now—one who’s overwhelmed by sin or the one who’s overwhelmed by Jesus despite his sin? Why?

Ask everyone to find a partner, and to put some space between them and the other pairs. If you have an odd number of group members, putting three people together is OK. Allow a minute for group members to partner up and make space, and then continue.

Earlier this week, you reflected on your “life passage,” as well as a few questions including, “What’s the one thing that most needs transforming in my life—that God wants me to lay down right now?” We’re going to take that a step further today. The person(s) you’re sitting with will be your partner(s) throughout this study. Of course, the rest of the group is here for you as well, but the people you’re with right now will be helping you lay down that one thing—or more. You’ll partner up at the end of each session, so use your time well. Also, try to find ways to connect with each other during the week. Then, watch what God does with it.

In your new groups, read the following excerpt from Day 1, and Romans 6:8–14. Then discuss question 8 together. Make your answers your prayer for one another throughout the week; try to pray for each other today, if you have time. We’ll come back together in ten minutes.

We have not died with Christ because we think we have, or because we agree that we have. We have died with Christ. Our old life is done. We need to truly realize that, and live in that new reality.

The tough part is living this out on a daily basis—or rather, dying it out.

  1. What’s one area of your life Jesus is calling you to “consider… dead” (Romans 6:11)—and leave dead—right now? Share as much as you’re willing.

Bring everyone back together. Then, pray for your group members. Ask God to help each of them to lay down the “one thing” they shared about today, and to be open to what God is trying to do in each of them. Pray also for the new relationships that they’re forming, and for what God wants to do through them.

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Lay Down Your Shame

Posted on May 13, 2015 by Carl Simmons

“Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” (Luke 5:8, NIV).

One of the very first things Peter says to Jesus captures a huge issue for many of us. After a night of fishing and catching nothing, Jesus blesses Peter, James, and John with more fish than they can handle—and all Peter can see is how short he’s fallen of God’s perfection.

Which, in itself, isn’t a bad thing. It’s not unusual for us, either, to react this way when we first encounter Jesus; and we always need to remember the truth in Peter’s words. But Jesus didn’t come just so he could “go away.” Instead, he calls us to lay down a life that’s often consumed by shame at who we are or what we’ve done.

The things we’ve done—and the evils done to us—are done. We can’t undo what happened, but we can undo the hold of those things upon us. We can own our sin without it owning us. Jesus’ response to Peter, James and John confirms this: “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.” (Luke 5:10). Jesus calls each of us to lay down our shame, and follow him forward instead.

If we continue to base our identity in our past instead of allowing it to die, we will never approach God—or more to the point, we’ll never let him in; God is already approaching us. Instead, we’ll do just about anything to fill the hole that the Spirit should be occupying. We believe we need to be successful, popular, powerful, constantly entertained, or occupied, because what we are and what we have isn’t good enough. That’s where the power of temptation lies: in the idea that who God created us to be, and what he’s created us for, isn’t good enough. That God got it—and us—wrong.

This brings us full-circle to where we began this series. Letting go of this old, false self and embracing who we were truly meant to be in Jesus is what this laying-down process is all about. We’re called to acknowledge our guilt and move on, not to take up permanent residence in our shame and hurt.

In a (hopefully not blasphemous) sense, Jesus has carried and shared in our guilt all the way back to the Garden of Eden. The Fall could have been prevented—but it wasn’t. Like the first Adam, Jesus chose to look on instead of stopping those events from occurring. But let’s not forget another incident, in another garden several thousand years later, which Jesus also could have stopped from happening—but he didn’t. Jesus stopped in Gethsemane, and saw through at Calvary, what began in Eden.

The cross removes our guilt. All of it. However, it leaves responsibility. Jesus says to us, just as he did the woman caught in adultery, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more” (John 8:11). And, to “take up the cross, and follow me” (Mark 10:21, KJV).

It’s not all work and struggle, though. Let’s circle back to Peter, because God uses him to give us a great “before and after” picture. Three years later, mere days after Jesus’ resurrection and appearance to the disciples—and for that matter, Peter’s repeated denial of Jesus—we see almost the exact same scene as the one in Luke 5, this time in John 21. Peter, James, and John go fishing again; this time they’ve got Thomas, Nathanael and two other disciples with them (and after all the bickering throughout the gospels, it’s nice to see them finally starting to work together). Again, they have another bad night of fishing.

This time Jesus shows up on the shore—close enough to yell, but far enough that they can’t yet tell it’s him. He tells them to cast out their nets, and again, the nets can’t hold all the fish they catch. Peter’s been here before; he realizes it’s Jesus.

But what’s Peter’s reaction this time? He throws himself into the sea and swims as fast as he can toward the shore. He doesn’t wait for the boat to dock—or freak because the guy he’d betrayed only days earlier is maybe a hundred yards away, back from the dead, and knows how to walk on water. This time, Peter’s going as fast as he can to Jesus. Clearly Peter’s still an impetuous kind of guy, and “a sinful man!”, but equally clearly he’s learned something about his relationship to Jesus. Peter, quite literally, is shame-less.

Now it’s our turn. Whatever has happened in our past is an opportunity for Jesus to transform it, and us, if we’ll let him. “Blessed are the poor in spirit” (Matthew 5:3). You are in fact already blessed because you don’t deserve grace, and no matter who you are or where you stand with Jesus at this moment, his grace is offered to you anyway, right now. Therefore, the challenge now becomes to receive and rejoice in that grace. The past is gone; let it stay gone. We’ll look more into that next month.

Lay It Down Today

What issues from your past came to mind as you read today? Get a piece of paper and write them down. Then bury your past—literally.

First, take some time to pray, giving over to God whatever you’ve written down, and asking the Spirit’s help to empower you to keep letting those things go. Then, take your paper and bury it (or tear it up). Thank God for your past—because it’s made you who are today, and in brand-new ways you’re now willing to let him reveal—but let whatever shame that remains in your past die, so your future can live.

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