11 January 2011

11 January 2011

Psalm 5, 6; Isa. 40:25-31; Eph. 1:15-23; Mark 1:14-28

It would seem that we have two choices, recognize the Lord and wait on Him or try and operate on our own. Most of the time we choose option B and we work on our own for a time until we reach the breaking point. Our society has established a norm of frenetic activity and we have little time to give to waiting upon the Lord. We grow impatient with waiting and move ahead in our own power with our own plans and we find that we are constantly weary and anxious. Resting is not on the agenda and we wonder why we don’t see the fruitfulness in our lives. Fruitfulness comes from time spent in the presence of God, we are changed in that encounter but we must wait on Him, quiet our minds and our hearts from all their concerns in order to receive what He has to offer. Is that our aim?

Given what I just wrote about waiting, Mark’s Gospel is jarring. In this Gospel, everything happens immediately. Four times in these fifteen verses he uses the word. Jesus calls the first disciples and they immediately follow, He sees James and John and immediately calls them also, in Capernaum they go immediately on the Sabbath to the synagogue, and as He teaches there appears immediately a man with an unclean spirit. Mark’s Gospel is breathless in its pacing. We must recall that all these events occur shortly after Jesus spent forty days in the wilderness fasting and praying. It was out of that time of preparation that He moves into action. He worked from rest and time spent with the Father, He was prepared for what would come. We tend to rest from work although our first day was a day of rest in Genesis.

Paul’s prayer for the Ephesians is that they receive a spirit of wisdom and revelation that they would know; the hope to which they are called, the riches of the glorious inheritance, and the greatness of His power towards all who believe. If we could truly know those things our lives would be different. Quiet confidence instead of anxiousness would be our hallmarks. Knowing what awaits us is part of the equation of preparation. If I were preparing to run a marathon I could quickly know what I needed to do and preparation for the kingdom is no different. What do we need to cultivate in our lives to be truly prepared to greet Him? Another part of the equation is the knowing of His power working in and through our lives by the Holy Spirit dwelling within us. If we know that He can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine then we will be able to rest in that power and to fan it into flame through prayer, study and resting in Him.

Let all who take refuge in you rejoice;
let them ever sing for joy,
and spread your protection over them,
that those who love your name may exult in you.
For you bless the righteous, O LORD;
you cover him with favor as with a shield.