Tenants

I’ve been confronted a lot recently with the woes of being a landlord. My mom owns several properties that she rents out to tenants. She finds a house with potential – one that tugs at her heart –, makes a down payment, pours time and resources into getting it ready for new habitants, and advertises for tenants. The tenants move in, call from time to time (some more often than others) with complaints about a leaky pipe or a broken door, and send in their rent checks (sometimes on time, sometimes for the full amount). Usually by the time they move out, they leave obvious evidence that this dwelling place was just a pit stop for them. They had no real investment in the property and no care for its upkeep. My mother had left them with the result of her excellence, and they left her with the outcome of their carelessness – a whole lot of damage to un-do.

Not too long ago, I was employed by another landlord who needed serious help cleaning up after his tenants. From the looks of it, they had not made an attempt to clean at all in the three years they had occupied his house, and to make matters worse, their dog seldom had the chance to do his business outside. The landlord had to rip up and replace floor boards and cabinets to get rid of the stench.

Considering these acts of negligence, I realized that every member of the human race is a tenant. The Creator has left us with His work of extravagant beauty and excellence – the Earth. He has entrusted this treasure into our care, and we have exploited it. The sky He created to dazzle us is now polluted with harmful chemicals. The once breath-taking river is now a slimy garbage pit. The lush forest has become a field of charred stumps. We should be grieved at what we have done to this piece of property we were meant to steward for a time.

Then there is the pinnacle of Creation – human beings. Our bodies are an intricate work of art. The fact that a life can be formed from two cells joining together is a miracle. From microscopic beginnings comes a body that is not only able to accomplish incredible feats of strength, flexibility, and coordination, but also houses a soul and spirit capable of loving, nurturing, creating, problem-solving, inventing, and communing with our Maker. I can’t say we’ve been any better stewards of this gift. We harm ourselves through everything from unhealthy lifestyles like gluttony and inactivity to self-mutilation like cutting. We hurt others who were also made in the Creator’s image: gossip, deceit, criticism, broken promises, stealing, abortion and murder…

If God were human, He would have evicted us by now to salvage what’s left of His property. But “the LORD is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love” (Psalm 145:8). And His works still praise Him – the majestic waves of the sea, the stunning colors of a sunset, the delicate spring flowers in bloom…the sweat of a tree-hugger working on a restoration project, the tears of a mother who once aborted her unwanted child, now fighting for the lives of other yet unborn children…the heavy breathing of a former couch potato getting their health back through self-discipline, the humility of a son or daughter confessing their rebellion to their parents and pleading forgiveness…the heartfelt prayer of a child of God coming to Him in repentance and asking for help to be transformed more into His likeness. Each act of love and sacrifice, no matter how big or small, brings a smile to the Father’s face.

“He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust.” ~Psalm 103:10-14

More than enough

When Jesus called the disciples, they left everything to follow Him, without a moment’s hesitation (Matthew 4:18-22). They gave up their self-sufficient life for one that depended on His grace. There were plenty of times when they were in need because of lack of resources, insecurity, or incapability, but Jesus met every need. When the disciples insisted they could never feed the crowd of 5,000, Jesus told them to find out what they had – five loaves and two fish. He thanked God for what they did have and used it – and it was more than enough (Mark 6:35-44). I often find myself doubting that the money in my bank account, or my qualifications, or my opportunities, are enough. But Jesus always takes what I have and makes it enough. Didn’t He provide me with that long-term substitute position against all odds? Didn’t He bring me the funds when I was in Honduras, just when I thought I was about to run out, time and time again? Didn’t He provide me with loving parents who offered me a free room as long as I need it and an interest-free loan for my car? He always provides.

Then there was the time the disciples were on the boat in the middle of a storm. They were used to being on the sea and dealing with rough waters, but this time the storm was severe enough that they feared for their lives. Jesus allowed that storm to test them, but He came through at just the right time and spoke peace to the storm (Mark 4:35-41). Hasn’t Jesus done that for me? Brought resolution to a relationship gone sour, taken me out of situations that threatened to destroy me, placed people in my life to speak words of peace and encouragement into the storm that raged inside?

What I really love about Jesus is that He cared – He cares. Even when He was tired and in need of alone time, He still had compassion on those who hungered for His touch (Mark 6:31-34). He healed all the sick who came to Him (Matthew 4:23-24). He modeled again and again for his disciples how to exercise authority over the devil’s schemes to bring freedom for the one in need. Yet when they were confronted with a demon-possessed boy, they proved they were still incapable. Jesus had to step in and take care of the situation Himself (Mark 9:14-29). So often I prove myself incapable of bringing Christ’s light into someone else’s darkness, but I know that He is training me and will not give up on me. Because I’ve given up everything to follow Him. Not always without a moment’s hesitation, but I have done it, and He will reward me…

“ ‘I tell you the truth,’ Jesus replied, ‘no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields – and with them, persecutions) and in the age to come, eternal life’ ” (Mark 10:29-30).

“ ‘Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father’ ” (John 14:12).

The Climb

I was going through a dark night of the soul for a while, struggling in every area of my life: work, finances, health, relationships, and thoughts. Not only that, but I was trying to draw close to God, and I didn't feel He was drawing near to me - no peace, no joy, no clarity. My prayers kept seeming they were about to be answered, and then the door would slam in my face. Three times, it seemed certain that I had a job in the bag, but then my potential employers would pull back because of some technicalities set forth by the State - their hands were tied, and they had to go with another candidate. Doors opened and closed not only in my job situation but also in finances, health, and relationships. I got angry at God. Though I know He doesn't taunt, that's sure what it felt like. I wished these opportunities would stop presenting themselves rather than giving me false hope.

What's funny is that during this time, I didn't feel I was in the right place to minister to others, feeling so far from God myself. Yet there were two times that I was obligated to minister. In both cases, these people were really touched, and it was confirmed that I had spoken just the right words. God spoke through me in my time of weakness in a way He hadn't done during the times I was feeling especially "spiritual".

I am still walking through this time of feeling distant from God, but every once in a while, He causes a light bulb to go on in my head, and I take one step closer to Him. At my lowest time, I realized I needed to repent of being angry at God, and I needed to ask forgiveness. I did - didn't feel a bit better, but knew I was doing the right thing.

A little while later, I was driving and listening to the radio, rather than a cd like I usually do. "The Climb" by Miley Cyrus came on. I've heard that song many times and knew there was truth to it, but this time it just clicked: "It's not about how fast I get there. It's not about what's waiting on the other side. It's the climb." I've spent most of my life striving for the next thing, seeing every task and every moment as something to get through and accomplish. But when I stepped out of my car that day, I did so with the realization that the Holy Spirit was with me in every step, and my goal needn't be to walk to my destination as quickly as possible and get my work done but to simply walk with Him everywhere I go. It was the first day in at least a week that my stomach didn't feel tense all day. When I got back in my car at the end of the day, I was thinking it would be cool if that song came on again, and what do you know - one of the first stations I turned to was playing it!

God has been revealing Himself to me as a loving Father, but I sometimes struggle with keeping that perspective. Though I have a great earthly father, he is imperfect, and at times I begin to see my Heavenly Father this way and feel resentful toward Him - almost like He's that kid on an anthill (if you've heard that analogy). But another day, I was in my car, and another song came on:

A thousand sparkling stars upon a midnight summer sky
The majesty and wonder of the ocean's endless tide
And the more I see the more I can't explain
How the one who set the world in place
Could even know my name and I'm amazed, I'm so amazed

How great You are, how small I am
How awesome is Your mighty hand
And I am captured by the wonder of it all
And I will offer all my praise with all my heart for all my days
How great You are, how great You are, how great You are

A million snow flakes gently fall, yet no two are the same
For colors fill the canvas of the seasons as they change

And everywhere I look I see Your hand
Why You would love someone like me
I'll never understand and I'm amazed, I'm so amazed

Another change in perspective. And finally, my situations are beginning to change. I just completed my second full week at a job I really enjoy (long-term high school Spanish sub) that is paying me almost three times what I was making before. This was one of those doors that shut definitively. They went with another candidate, but circumstances changed. A week and a half after they had told me they couldn't hire me, they got back in touch with me. I went in that day to interview, taught a sample lesson the next day, was hired that afternoon, and started work five days later.

I have finally found someone who is helping me get my health back, and I am beginning to see improvement. I am beyond busy right now, and so much about the future is uncertain, but God is good, and He has only good plans for me - for all who love Him (Jeremiah 29:11, Romans 8:28). The Israelites had to march around Jericho six days, then seven times on the seventh day before the walls came down (Joshua 6). Another time, Israel sought the Lord before going into battle. They did everything right, obeying everything God told them to do, but they were defeated twice, suffering many losses, before finally winning the victory (Judges 20). I don't know why God does what He does, but I know that faith and perseverance please Him.

"And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him." ~Hebrews 11:6

"Since ancient times no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for him." ~Isaiah 64:4

The battle is not yours

You know the saying, "God helps those who help themselves"? It's true that we can't just sit back and expect God to take care of everything for us. But here's the other side of the coin: God helps those who trust in Him. For instance, take the story laid out in 2 Chronicles 20: A "vast army" is coming against Israel, and king Jehoshaphat knows his army could never hold its own against these invaders. So he and the people of Judah come together to fast, pray, and seek the Lord. They remind Him of His promises (a great way to pray) and end by saying, "We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you" (v. 12).

The Holy Spirit moves an Israelite to prophesy: "Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s. Tomorrow march down against them. They will be climbing up by the Pass of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the gorge in the Desert of Jeruel. You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the LORD will give you, Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the LORD will be with you" (v. 15-17).

Don't fear. Trust. Go. Take up your position, standing firm in the armor God has provided you (Ephesians 6:10-18). Submit to God, then resist your enemy (James 4:7).

The rest of the story is truly amazing: "As they began to sing and praise, the LORD set ambushes against the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir who were invading Judah, and they were defeated. The Ammonites and Moabites rose up against the men from Mount Seir to destroy and annihilate them. After they finished slaughtering the men from Seir, they helped to destroy one another. When the men of Judah came to the place that overlooks the desert and looked toward the vast army, they saw only dead bodies lying on the ground; no one had escaped. So Jehoshaphat and his men went to carry off their plunder" (v. 22-25). Praise your God. Acknowledge His might, not your enemy's strength. Thank Him. Praise will take you into your victory.

To see another similar story where God defeated Israel's enemy before they even came into contact, read about Gideon in Judges 7. As in these two stories, sometimes all God calls us to do is trust Him, rest in Him.

Other times, however, He calls us to fight. Not in our strength, but His. See, for example, Exodus 17:8-13 and Numbers 21:1-3. In Joshua 6, it was persevering obedience that God used to bring down the walls of Jericho, but the army still had to step over the rubble and fight.

Here is an anecdote that I find to be funny: The Israelites have finally been freed from Egypt, but the pharaoh has a change in heart and pursues them with his army: all his "horses and chariots, horsemen and troops" (Exodus 14:9). The Israelites complain to Moses that it would have been better to remain slaves for life than die in the desert. Moses replies, "Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still" (v. 13-14).

While this statement shows great faith and reflects what God had been teaching Moses, it isn't the advice God wants Moses to give. "Then the LORD said to Moses, 'Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on. Raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the water so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground' " (v. 15-16). If the Israelites had listened to their leader's pious command to be still, they never would have reached the Promised Land.

We will never reach our promised land unless we both trust in the Lord and are open to what He is doing. If He says fight, fight. If He says rest, rest. If He says go, go. If He says stay, stay. If He says speak, speak. If He says be silent, be silent. About the only thing predictable concerning God is that He loves you, He will never leave you, and no matter what He tells you to do, it is for your good.

"Stop trusting in man, who has but a breath in his nostrils. Of what account is he?" (Isaiah 2:22).

"The LORD your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory" (Deuteronomy 20:4).