Coffee With The Lord

Have you ever had a powerful, awe-inspiring, unforgettable experience with the Living God – a genuine, authentic “God-encounter”?  Where and when did it happen?  What was its impact on you?  Did it happen in church or somewhere else?  What were you doing at the time?  What was your response?

Now I think everyone needs to have an experience like that!  I’ve had a few… and they were life transforming!

Isaiah had one… He was in the temple (“church” if you please).  But experiences like this are not limited to “church” – they can happen anywhere.  Moses was in the “wilderness” when he experienced God’s presence in a “burning bush”.  Paul, the great apostle, was on a horse on his way to Damascus to do something evil.  John was all alone, exiled on a desolate island.  God can show up ANYWHERE!!  I encountered God powerfully as a farm boy in the middle of a plowed field one day (I’ll have to tell you that story someday J)

This morning during “coffee with the Lord” I read about Isaiah’s “God-encounter” in Isaiah 6…

“In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him were seraphim… and they were calling to one another: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.”  At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke. “Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty!”  Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he touched my mouth and said, “See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.”  Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”  (Isaiah 6:1-8)

The “where” and “when” of this account doesn’t really matter that much – however, “church” is a wonderful place to encounter God!  The impact of Isaiah’s experience is significant… Whenever we truly have a God-encounter we become painfully aware of our inadequacy, our sinfulness, and the fact that without God’s mercy “we are ruined!”  But as is often the case in a God-encounter, when we cry out to God for mercy and grace, He hears us and mercifully forgives and cleanses us.  Furthermore, he often “sends” us. 

My prayer?  Oh Heavenly Father, give us more “God-encounters!”

Christians experience indignation and revulsion, and rightly so, at the evil they see expressed in the culture all around them.  Evil and injustice seem rampant – society sometimes seems to be coming apart at the seams.  The tragedy is some of the terrible injustice and wickedness we have seen in our world has been carried on by religious folk and professing Christians!  This ought not to be!  It breaks the heart of God and arouses His righteous wrath.

It’s interesting that Isaiah 5.8-23 – a passage that contains six prophetic woes – is a prophetic word spoken to people who claimed to be God’s people and prided themselves in their religious heritage!  As I read it this morning during “coffee with the Lord” I felt a “beware” arise in my heart!  History is filled with the sad record of self-righteous people who did not guard their hearts and live in practical obedience to God’s word, instead they slipped in to sin, were guilty of terrible oppression and practiced all kinds of wickedness… And yet, they claimed to be “Christians!”  What a tragedy!  This is not just an Old Testament problem!

Read the passage for yourself from a modern translation like the New Living Translation or The Message (Isaiah 5.8-23).  Here’s summary of the sins that brought the “Woe to you…” from God!

1. Those guilty of exploitation and greed (vss. 8-9)
2. Drunkenness and indulgent lifestyles (vss. 11-17)
3. Those who mock God’s authority (vss. 18-19)
4. Those who reject biblical norms and instead exalt wickedness (vs. 20)
5. Self-righteous arrogance and pride (vs. 21)
6. Perverted justice (vss. 22-23)

Titus 2.1-10 speaks about “sound doctrine” and urges Christians to live the kind of life that “makes the teaching about God our Savior attractive in every way.”  I want to live that way, don’t you?

Here’s a question that came to my mind as I read about our Lord’s temptation in Matthew 4.1-11 this morning during “coffee with the Lord” … “How important is God’s word to me when I am facing temptations and trials?  How important and essential do I consider the truth of Scripture to be in order to successfully weather the difficulty I am facing and overcome?”

There is no question about it… temptation and trials will come our way!  In fact, in this instance the Bible says… “Then Jesus WAS LEAD BY THE SPIRIT into the wilderness TO BE TEMPTED BY THE DEVIL!” (4.1)  God allows temptation to come our way … the devil is the one who tempts us, but God permits it.  I can almost hear the Lord whispering now… “LISTEN, CHILD OF GOD, THIS IS A TEST!”  1 Corinthians 10.13 makes it clear… Temptation is a common experience, God limits it to our ability to bear it, and His purpose for us is not failure, but victory!

But back to the question… “How important is God’s word to me when I face temptations and trials?”

In every instance of Jesus Christ’s temptation, He drew of Scripture for the resources to resist and overcome!!  On each occasion, you find Jesus responding to Satan by saying, “IT IS WRITTEN!”  In fact on one occasion Jesus reminded Satan, “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” (Quoting Deuteronomy 8.3, reminding Satan of God’s miraculous provision of “manna” to sustain His people during their test in the wilderness). 

This principle is not some kind of spiritual “rabbit’s foot” that I pull out of my pocket to rub superstitiously and “presto… victory!”  The principles and truth of God’s word are something I must build into my life day by day … they must become part of my “spiritual psyche” if you please!  Then when temptations and trials come and my inner-self reaches out for resources to deal with them… God’s word is there to help, sustain, and guide me!! 

Hey, that’s one of the reasons I have “coffee with the Lord” every day!