Does Life Matter?

The other day I picked up a biography on Heath Ledger, an Australian-born actor who made it big in Hollywood until his untimely demise at the age of 28.  My greatest interest in reading the book is learning about the man behind the masks.  As I read the book, however, I find that the author doesn't have insights into Mr. Ledger on a deep, personal level.  It is more of a chronology of events, a timeline sprinkled with quotes.  Heath's own words open a small window to his heart.

Heath had a unique perspective of the world and his place in it, as illustrated by this quote:  "I've always been very big on self-exploration and answering my own questions...I look up at the stars and go, 'There's no explanation for us to be here.'  When anything is blocking my head or there's worry in my life, I just - whoosh! - go sit on Mars or something and look back here at Earth.  All you see is this tiny speck; you don't see the fear, you don't see the pain, you don't see the movie industry, you don't see this interview, you don't see thought...It's just one solid speck.  Then nothing really matters, it just doesn't." (Heath Ledger, McShane, John Blake Publishing Ltd., 2008, pg. 67)

As I read that quote, the only word I can think to describe it is "tragic!"  It may be artistic from a worldly point of view, but the philosophy found within one's own heart is desperately lacking and often misleading.  When I look at the stars, I say just the opposite:  "There is a reason we are here."  It is impossible to maintain proper perspective in life apart from a relationship with the Creator and Giver of life:  Jesus Christ.  Jesus experienced first-hand the effects of sin man brought upon himself through rebellion against God.  He answered questions, shared the wisdom of God, cast out fear with perfect love, and experienced pain for us.  He knew what it was like to be hounded by the paparazzi of His day.  What God does matters, and the fact that He loves us makes all the difference.

I can't answer my own questions, but I'm thankful God answers..  I would have really loved to sit down with Heath and have a discussion about the development of his philosophy over the years.  I wouldn't speak to him in an attempt to prove him wrong or tell him the right way to live.  It would simply be to listen, to hear where he's coming from.  He believed there is no explanation behind why human beings walk this earth.  Yet for 28 years, Heath walked this earth and distinguished himself from others due to his skill in the art of acting.  He was very careful in choosing roles.  How can you say your roles or actions matter when in the big picture nothing matters?  My heart breaks for the guy.  The trip back and forth to Mars seems to have been tiring and unsatisfying.  Mars seemed more and more attractive as a permanent home over the camera flashes, money, fame, drugs, voyeurs, and realizing that his life was not his own:  he was a product that had an expiration date.  The man never came back from his last trip.  But Mars isn't where souls stay after their body dies.  I only know what the Bible says:  Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.  No one comes to the Father except through Him.  He created Heath, knows Him, and I hope Heath knew Christ as LORD too.  Rest in peace, mate.

Life does matter.  We exist to glorify God, even as the stars which shine brightly in the heavens.  Psalm 19:1-3 reads, "The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork. ² Day unto day utters speech, and night unto night reveals knowledge. ³ There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard."  Whether you are are a star which shines in space or a movie star in Hollywood, our existence is intended to shine for the glory of God.  Let all we do be to this end.  Isaiah 55:6-9 says, "Seek the LORD while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near. ⁷ Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the LORD, and He will have mercy on him; and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon. ⁸ "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways," says the LORD. ⁹ "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts." We matter to God, and pleasing Him should matter to us.

God's Lovingkindness

"Thus says the LORD: "Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, let not the mighty man glory in his might, nor let the rich man glory in his riches; ²⁴ but let him who glories glory in this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the LORD, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight," says the LORD."

Jeremiah 9:23-24

Last night during our family devotions we read through this passage.  What a wonderful reminder it is of the loving, gracious, and holy character of God.  How easy it is for our ideas of God to be warped by the opinions of those who do not know Him or through our own prejudice!  People's ideas of God range from imaginary to real, a benevolent "Santa Claus" or Genie contrasted with the fire-breathing destroyer and hater of men.  To magnify a single aspect of God's character at the expense of ignoring another contorts our perception of God.

In the Jeremiah passage, God entreats the wise not to glory in his wisdom, nor the mighty man in his might, or the rich man in his riches.  Instead, whoever who glories should glory in the fact he understands and knows God.  This is a wonderful truth, that God has revealed Himself to man primarily through His Word and the person of Jesus Christ.  Man can understand and know His Creator in a personal way, even as a man knows a close friend.  The character of God is revealed through His righteous law, perfect justice, and gracious lovingkindness.  The automatic spell-checker does not believe that "lovingkindness" is a real word, and most people have no idea of the incredible lovingkindness of God.

For many of those who do believe and affirm there is a "God," He is a strictly impersonal, judgmental, passive, and potentially volatile god.  They would nod their heads if I described Him as just and righteous.  But does He exercise lovingkindness and actually delight in it?  The transliteration of this Hebrew word is "hesed," meaning "kindness, favour, mercy, pity."  God is a loving, gracious God.  He is loving to punish wickedness, and His lovingkindness is evident through His correction, grace, and mercy towards us.  Romans 5:8 reads, "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

This morning I read two incredible messages by G. Campbell Morgan titled "The Sifting of Peter" and "The Turning Again of Peter" (The Westminster Pulpit, Vol. 1, Chapters 15 & 16).  He details how Peter denied Jesus after boasting he would not.  Instead of being angry or offended at Peter upon meeting with him again, Jesus was compassionate and filled with love.  Peter was deeply ashamed because of his failure and cried bitterly.  He was broken over the fact he had denied Christ on the night He was betrayed in public, and for the fact that Jesus knew it.  Jesus did not confront Peter as many of us would have if we had been betrayed.  Jesus did not say, "I told you so," glare at Peter, or make cynical comments aimed at belittling him in front of others.  He asked Peter a simple, direct question:  "Do you love me?"  The fact that Jesus loved Peter was undeniable.  Jesus had chosen, called, and taught Peter, and even saved him from drowning.  Jesus had washed Peter's feet, showed His undying love through the cross, and had risen from the dead.  At that moment Jesus had just fed Peter and the disciples breakfast.  He asked Peter, "Do you love me?"

Jesus asks you today:  "Do you love me?"  Instead of "keeping us in line" through threats of judgment or the risk of our sin being found out by others, it is Christ's lovingkindness which draws us to repentance.  Jeremiah 31:3 shows us clearly the heart of God towards all flesh:  "The LORD has appeared of old to me, saying: "Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you."  It should not be the threat of God's wrath that keeps us from sin, but the love of Christ.  When we struggle between right and wrong Jesus Himself stands with us, places His arm around our shoulders, looks us in the eyes (and we cannot hold that penetrating gaze of compassion, being ashamed of our sin and continual failure), and says with love:  "Do you love me?"  What a weighty question to which everyone must respond.  Our words carry little weight:  it is our life that will provide our answer.

Perhaps your dad related to you by fear, an imposing figure of terror or violence.  Maybe you have suffered much through men who abused their authority or position.  You could be deeply wounded by a pastor or a priest who claimed to be a man of God!  But I implore you in the name of Jesus, never allow the sins of men to poison your perceptions of God.  Go to scripture and read of this God, the Creator of All Things, the One who delights in exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness.  Instead of trying to balance your beliefs through the opinions of others or negative experiences, seek the truth from the Source.  Forget all your bias, admit your ignorance, and seek God with your whole heart.  You will see that He created and knows you, and He desires to be understood and known by you.

I close with the words of Psalm 103:1-18.  Read and believe, if you dare!  "Bless the LORD, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name! ² Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits: ³ who forgives all your iniquities, who heals all your diseases, ⁴ who redeems your life from destruction, who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies, ⁵ who satisfies your mouth with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's. ⁶ The LORD executes righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed. ⁷ He made known His ways to Moses, His acts to the children of Israel. ⁸ The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in mercy. ⁹ He will not always strive with us, nor will He keep His anger forever. ¹⁰ He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities. ¹¹ For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him; ¹² as far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. ¹³ As a father pities his children, so the LORD pities those who fear Him. ¹⁴ For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust. ¹⁵ As for man, his days are like grass; as a flower of the field, so he flourishes. ¹⁶ For the wind passes over it, and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more. ¹⁷ But the mercy of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him, and His righteousness to children's children, ¹⁸ to such as keep His covenant, and to those who remember His commandments to do them."

Trust God's Healing Hands

Yesterday marked the first day of baseball season for the Grisez boys, and it was nostalgic for me to be back on the field as a third base coach.  Both boys had two hits and scored a run, so it was a great boost to their confidence.  One thing that is different about playing baseball in Australia is the absence of the Pledge of Allegiance and the Little League Pledge.  Near the scoreboard of Little League fields all over America, the American flag flies.  After stating the Pledge of Allegiance, the players recite:  "I trust in God, I love my country, and will respect its laws.  I will play fair, and strive to win, but win or lose, I will always do my best."  Play ball!

I am happy to say the Pledge is still around, even after all these years - just like God!  For me, saying that pledge is still a statement of fact.  I do trust in God, I do love my country (currently Australia).  I will play fair and do my best to win.  When two teams show up to play no matter the sport, either team can win.  One team could be better in every statistical category, have the best talent and equipment, and still lose.  That is why the game is played and what makes it exciting:  you never know exactly how things will play out.  That's one of the amazing things about God.  He does not operate in the way we would expect.  He doesn't often tell us what He's planning to do.  But if we trust Him, it will always be for the best.

An illustration to confirm this is still a vivid memory for me.  A young man I knew dislocated his knee and experienced incredible pain.  After he was given medication, he was taken by ambulance to the hospital.  Upon seeing him, the doctor nonchalantly began to examine the leg and - snap!  He quickly manipulated the leg back into place, causing excruciating pain for an instant.  When the young man asked the doctor why he didn't warn him, the doctor explained that if he had told him what he planned to do, he would have resisted him.  He used the tactic of surprise to quickly put the limb back into place safely so the healing could begin.

This is what God so often does with us.  We experience pain and wonder, what is God thinking!  How could he allow me to have such deep, excruciating, gut-wrenching pain?  Trust the Good Shepherd, little lamb.  He knows what parts of your life must be manipulated so the healing can begin.  He will bring the relief and healing you desire.  If the doctor did not adjust the leg, the young man would have remained a cripple.  It was love and desire for restoration that motivated the doctor to cause a little pain.  The young man now serves in the armed forces and the injury is only a distant memory.

No matter what you're going through, no matter how deep the searing pain, trust God.  He never changes, and His thoughts are good towards us, to give us a future and a hope.

A milestone...and still miles to go!

Blogs are interesting animals.  I suppose the motivation for regularly maintaining blogs are endless.  For some it might be strictly cathartic, for others it might be the opportunity for self-revelation.  Though an avid reader, I spend virtually no time reading blogs.  Some are chronological family reports, while others are dedicated to political rant.  I have the feeling that some blogs scream, "Look at me!" in a frantic attempt for significance in the vast yet cluttered cyberspace.

I am convinced people write blogs so people will read them.  I write because I believe it is what God wants me to do.  With the amount of writing I do in study and sermon preparation, it seems unnecessary for me to write more.  This blog is a medium which allows me to share the truth He teaches me with others who care to hear it.  Today this blog has notched over 10,000 page views from all over the world, and to me that is a significant milestone.  Tack on another zero and that will be another milestone.  If you are curious, the most views have come from these countries:  United States, Australia, Malaysia, South Korea, and the United Kingdom.  As great as it is to see people browsing the blog, my prayer (and yes, I pray that God uses this thing) is that through reading people would come to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ and be encouraged in their faith.  One page-view God uses to this end is worth a billion views to me.  In the end, I can take no credit because I have only done (and sometimes left undone) what is my joyful duty to do.

Thank you for taking the time to read.  Just because someone puts in effort to write does not mean it is worth reading.  I am humbled and blessed to have a LORD and Saviour Jesus Christ who gives us gifts which we can give back to Him for His glory.  What gifts has God given you?  How can you use them to bring honor and glory to His name?  Whatever God has gifted you to do, do that thing.  Do it well, seek to improve, and keep doing it.  In a parable Jesus told, He illustrated the benefits of simple faithfulness.  Matthew 25:21 says, "His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.'"  You don't need to wait until heaven to hear well done.  You don't need to physically die before you enter into the joy of the LORD.  If you are obedient and faithful, you do well to enter into the joy of the LORD today!