Inktober 2018 Day 3 - Roasted

The first picture that popped into my mind when I read “Roasted” was the literal popping of a bonfire, inviting the sweet, decadent roasting of marshmallows, and I could hear the song begin to rise…

No place I would rather be, no place I would rather be, no place I would rather be
Than here in Your Love! Here in your Love! Here in your Love!

No place I would rather be, no place I would rather be, no place I would rather be
Than here in Your Love! Here in your Love! Here in your Love!

So set a fire down in my soul
That I can't contain and I can't control.
I want more of You, God!
I want more of You, God!

So set a fire down in my soul
That I can't contain and I can't control.
I want more of You, God!
I want more of You, God!

I am reminded of the story of Mary and Martha in the Bible…

Now as they were traveling along, [Jesus] entered a village; and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home. She had a sister called Mary, who was seated at the Lord’s feet, listening to His word. But Martha was distracted with all her preparations; and she came up to Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Then tell her to help me.” But the Lord answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.” ~Luke 10:38-42

Let me take you down a (not so) quick bunny trail. One way that I love studying the Bible is through the use of cross references. Before finding a sermon or notes on a specific passage, I like to try gaining my own understanding. I seek out what other passages that verse may be pointing to. The first passage I’d like to take you to is Luke 12:22-32:

And [Jesus] said to His disciples, “For this reason I say to you, do not worry about your life, as to what you will eat; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap; they have no storeroom nor barn, and yet God feeds them; how much more valuable you are than the birds! And which of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life’s span? If then you cannot do even a very little thing, why do you worry about other matters? Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; but I tell you, not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass in the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, how much more will He clothe you? You men of little faith! And do not seek what you will eat and what you will drink, and do not keep worrying. For all these things the nations of the world eagerly seek; but your Father knows that you need these things. But seek His kingdom, and these things will be added to you. Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has chosen gladly to give you the kingdom.

While Martha was so worried and bothered about many things, she hadn’t stopped to realize all she truly needed in that moment was to be in Jesus’ presence. If God takes care of the birds and the flowers, how much more does he take care of us? Anxiety and stress tend to distract us from what really matters, but it’s not always just stress-related. I distinctly remember the first time I ever felt like I could relate to Martha. One Sunday morning Justin and I were preparing to have guests over for lunch and games, and I was running around trying to clean, organize, and cook all while listening to the sermon. Justin, on the other hand, was completely engaged in listening to our pastor preach, lost in worship. At first I felt annoyed that Justin wasn’t helping, or even asking if I needed help, but then it hit me like a ton of bricks. I sensed that God was whispering to me, “I just want you. You don’t have to please or impress anyone but me.” All of the things I was doing weren’t bad. But I was prioritizing them over spending time in the presence of my Father, worshiping with my husband. When the priorities get jumbled, that is usually when stress and discontentment creep in.

Luke 12 brought me to Matthew 6:8, which says “Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.” That affirms how well God knows our needs before we even have to ask, or worry if he does or doesn’t know. The surrounding verses are actually talking about prayer in this context. Verses 5-14 begin with explaining how you should pray, not extravagantly so others can see, nor with so many words in order to be heard. God rewards what is done intimately in private, and he also already knows our needs before we express them with several empty phrases as fluff. Verse 8 is then followed by the Lord’s Prayer. I find it fitting that a passage talking about not being anxious directly references a passage that talks about prayer. What better way to relieve anxiety than to pray to the God of the universe?

Back up to Mary and Martha, the next cross reference I followed was in relation to Jesus saying “Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.” I was curious what “portion” was referencing, because I’ve heard that word several times in the Bible, but never really knew what it meant. This brings us to Lamentations 3:22-25:

The Lord’s lovingkindnesses indeed never ceases,
For His compassions never fail.
They are new every morning;
Great is Your faithfulness.
“The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
“Therefore I have hope in Him.”
The Lord is good to those who wait for Him,
To the person who seeks Him.

There’s “portion” again, which seems to be relating to God’s faithfulness, and having contentedness in him. I will hope in the Lord, because he faithfully provides everything I need…God’s faithfulness is elaborated upon more in Psalm 36:5-6:

Your lovingkindness, O Lord, extends to the heavens,
Your faithfulness reaches to the skies.
Your righteousness is like the mountains of God;
Your judgments are like a great deep.
O Lord, You preserve man and beast.

I see a theme of provision from God to us in these. There is no limit to how high, deep, and wide God’s love, faithfulness, righteousness, and judgments are—Just like the simple prayer we say around meals: “God is great, God is good, thank you God for this food.” God is great, and there is no limit to what he is capable of. And God is good, and he is loving enough to want to (This idea came from Sun Stand Still, which is a fantastic read!!).

One more “portion” passage before the original context is Psalm 73:25-26:

Whom have I in heaven but You?
And besides You, I desire nothing on earth.
My flesh and my heart may fail,
But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

Love, love, love. This is such a beautiful and authentic faith that Asaph is expressing—where there is literally nothing else he desires other than God. I think this is very similar to Mary’s faith shown in Luke. She could have been distracted by all that needed to get done, but all she wanted in that moment was to sit at Jesus’ feet, and learn from him.

My final reference for “portion” is Numbers 18:20, “Then the Lord said to Aaron, “You shall have no inheritance in their land nor own any portion among them; I am your portion and your inheritance among the sons of Israel.‘“ This statement was preceded by the distribution of all the tithes and offerings to the priests and Levites. Aaron’s portion and inheritance was God! So our portion, when we say God is our portion, is literally to receive God and his glory, because we are his children, and therefore heirs (Romans 8:17). When we have an eternal perspective rather than a present-day perspective, “the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” (Romans 8:18)

One last thought, having to do with “choosing the good part…” The more time we spend with the Lord in his Word, and in prayer, and in fellowship, the stronger the relationship will be. I think about when Justin and I first started dating, we would have hours and hours of conversation simply getting to know each other more, and to learn what made us “us.” We would stay up late every night, just talking, and I think that played a great role in how fast our relationship went. There wasn’t any “fluff” as I phrase it, but every single conversation was intentional. Exodus 33:11 says, “Thus the Lord used to speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend…” How amazing that would be to experience! And Exodus 34:29 says, “When Moses came down from Mount Sinai, with the two tablets of the testimony in his hand as he came down from the mountain, Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God.” One last last (sorry) passage, Psalm 34:4-5:

I sought the Lord, and he answered me
    and delivered me from all my fears.
Those who look to him are radiant,
    and their faces shall never be ashamed.

People can tell when we spend time with the Lord, whether they know it or not, because it shows! Those that have a relationship with Jesus attract others, because there is nothing more attractive than being in the presence of the Lord.

Looping all the way back to the beginning of this post, all of this being said, sitting in front of that crackling fire, therefore, “No place I would rather be, than here in your love!”