by Shannon Tillman | Dec 5, 2024 | Thoughts
The book of Matthew begins with a genealogy. Some of the names are more familiar than others. Yet, often, these verses are skipped over to continue to the narrative. But by doing this, we miss the story that formed the history of Jesus! It is a messy family tree which makes it all the more interesting.
Let me highlight a few of the people on the list:
- Abraham: Father of the faith, also lied about his wife being his sister (actually, more manipulated the truth since she was his half-sister). This put her in the Pharoah’s harem. Sadly, he did this more than once!
- Jacob: a liar and deceiver. Through four different women, he had twelve sons which became the tribes of Israel.
- Judah: Slept with his daughter-in-law thinking she was a prostitute. He was planning on having her killed when she proved that he was the father.
- Rahab: a Canaanite prostitute that was rescued out of Jericho.
- Ruth: a Moabite, idol worshipper, from a pagan nation that were enemies of Israel. She left her nation and her gods to accompany her mother-in-law to Israel.
- David: a mighty king who also had an adulterous affair, then killed the husband of the woman even though the man, Uriah, was one of the mighty men of Israel’s army. Also, he decided to conduct a census of Israel against God’s will so the nation was punished, costing the lives of thousands of people.
- Solomon: wisest man who ever lived. However, he died foolishly because he married so many women who led him astray after other gods. He abandoned the Lord and became an idol worshipper.
- Rehoboam: listened to his friends instead of wise counsel which ended up splitting the nation of Israel into two kingdoms.
- Uzziah: a mighty king who expanded the borders of Israel. However, he decided he wanted to conduct priestly duties in the temple. The priests had to confront him, and he was struck with leprosy due to his actions.
- Manasseh: an evil king who killed his own children in idol worship. He was captured by Babylon and sent to prison. Yet, he cried out to the Lord in his distress. Amazingly, Manasseh was allowed to return to Israel as king where he spent the rest of his life telling others to return to the true God.
These are just a few from the list. But what encourages me is that Christ still came. The dysfunction, rebellion, perversion, and crime did not stop the plan of God to bring salvation to the world through this family line. In fact, God took terrible situations and turned them in amazing ways over hundreds of years. The perfect Man, Son of God, had an imperfect heritage.
My family is messed up, and so is yours. Our dysfunction may look different, but it is sin just the same. Yet, Jesus can still come forth in our generation. We can choose to be the ones who do what is right, no matter what wrong was done in previous generations, no matter the wrong done to us.
In the list of names are also faithful kings who tore down idols and fought to protect the nation. There are names of heroes who chose to return to build the temple of God after years of exile. There were men like Boaz and Salmon who married foreign women, changed their lives, and brought them into the people of God.
Your generation is now. It does not matter your age. You have the opportunity to “birth Christ” into your family line. When you choose to live according to the Lord, not according to your past, you bring Jesus to your family. It may not be readily accepted by others. They may choose the “old family ways”. But you can be faithful today, no matter what others have done in generations before you.
Jesus still comes to families. The genealogy stops with Him. No more family problems after Jesus shows up. He is the perfect Son. He brings salvation to the whole family!
Be encouraged. No matter your family issues, Jesus still comes; He still delivers; He still redeems. You are no longer defined by your past or your family’s past, instead your present is measured by Jesus. His record is perfect! You have a new family tree; it is the cross of Jesus!
by Shannon Tillman | Nov 28, 2024 | Thoughts
I did not know her story, yet without words she touched my heart.
It was a difficult day for me. I had a situation that was tearing my life apart. The pain seemed to never go away. Once again, I was in church and engaging in worship. Tears flowed freely as I struggled to sing, but in truth, I could hardly pray.
At that moment, I saw her. She was on stage singing with the worship team. In the midst of the song, she raised her hand. I do not know how I knew, but I just felt it was a true sacrifice of praise. She was raising her hand in her pain and choosing to believe God despite what she had gone through. And I knew, by her example, I could do the same. My tears stopped for a moment and I began to breathe a wordless thanksgiving from a very broken heart.
Later, I found out her story. She had tragically lost her husband a few years before. The day of her hand-raising in the midst of worship would have been their wedding anniversary. She chose to praise in her pain, to thank God while grieving her tragedy, to worship despite her wounds.
That is true thanksgiving. We often think it can only come out of an overflowing heart from blessed circumstances. But that day I saw what true thanksgiving looked like. It took me back to the first Thanksgiving. The pilgrims celebrated their lives because they made it through winter even though most of the colony had tragically died. It was not from years of triumph, but from years of loss that they chose to give thanks. They survived. They saw another day. They still had breath in their lungs, and they used it to give thanks. In the grieving, they held onto hope.
Friend, I do not know what you may be experiencing. This Thanksgiving may be born out of loss and pain. I encourage you to follow the example of this precious woman who raised her hand to praise the God who comforts us, who is near us, who loves us, who takes care of us in our pain.
Psalm 34:18
“The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”
May you feel the comfort of God as I did that day, knowing He understands our pain and others can encourage us to hold on, to believe God, to even thank Him on the very difficult days.
by Kevin Tillman | Oct 17, 2024 | Thoughts
“God never hurries. There are no deadlines against which He must work. Only to know this is to quiet our spirits and relax our nerves.” – A.W. Tozer
We live in a world that is in a hurry. It’s just about impossible to not be affected by the busyness. Everything is fast. Anyone remember the old days of dial-up internet? Remember waiting and waiting and waiting for an image to finally appear on the screen? We didn’t think too much of it, because it was all we knew. You could go back further in history. We whine about a package taking more than two days to get to us. Have you ever really processed how quick that really is? I mean you can order something from the other side of the country and it be sitting on your front doorstep in 48 hours. That’s actually pretty remarkable. As I’m sitting here typing this blog entry I could take a break and order a ticket on an airline. I could be on the other side of the world in less than two days. And on top of that, I could sit in a seat that is magically suspended in the air. I mean, come on, it’s really amazing what we can do now.
Against that backdrop is a God that works on His timetable. The things of the heart take longer. Our nerves and our spirit need solitude. They need rest. They need time off from the fast-paced world. God wants us whole. He isn’t rushed in the process. We’re in a hurry, but He’s not.
The old saying goes, “take time to smell the roses”. It’s good advice. Slow down, rest, listen, and refresh. God does His best in us when we finally, yes finally, settle in and listen. It’s then that we are ready to receive. Make solitude and reflection a part of your life. It’s not just good advice, it’s the way God designed us.
by Shannon Tillman | Oct 10, 2024 | Thoughts
A messy journal entry is straight from my prayer journal. Sometimes, I
write things down that are easier to transcribe from my prayer journal (or fix
some of the grammar and thoughts) then try to “tidy up” and make into a decent
blog post.
Here are some of my thoughts comparing Moses climbing Mt. Sinai and
Jesus climbing Golgotha. Mt. Sinai is where Moses received the ten
commandments. It was on Golgotha that Jesus was crucified.
The meaning of the word “Sinai” is “thorny”. Moses walked the mountain
of thorns. Jesus walked up to Golgotha with a crown of thorns on His head. As
Moses went up a thorny mountain, thorns pulled on his clothes. As Jesus made
His way from the Garden to Golgotha; thorns, whips, and nails pulled on His skin.
Moses conquered a mountain of thorns to receive the ten commandments. Jesus
conquered the curse of mankind who broke the ten commandments. Moses
walked on the curse (thorns) caused by Adam. Jesus, the second Adam, became
the curse for us.
When Moses went up the mountain he held the two stone tablets in one
hand; he probably had his wooden staff in the other. It was this staff that was
lifted up over the Red Sea, parting for the Israelites for freedom and consuming
the Egyptians in the waters that closed back in on them. The stone tablets would
be engraved with the law, the wooden staff would be a symbol of the mercy of
God in helping His people and vanquishing the enemy. Law and mercy come
together to ascend the mountain. Jesus, the fulfillment of the law, carried the
cross up a mountain as well. Law and mercy come together. The ultimate enemy,
Satan himself, is conquered as the cross is lifted up. Lives are forever changed.
The nation of Israel was forgiven at Mt. Sinai; the world was forgiven at Golgotha.
The wooden staff was a picture to the nation of Israel of the power of God.
The staff was raised when the Red Sea parted making a way for Israel to freedom.
It was the staff that struck the rock causing water to pour out, giving life-giving
water to a thirsty nation who came to the waters. The wooden cross is a picture
to the world of the power of God. The cross raised up made a way for man to be
freed from sin and have a relationship with God. It was the pierced side of Jesus
where blood and water flowed out, so the death of Jesus gives life to all who
come to Him.
Pictures of Jesus are found throughout the Old Testament. How amazing is
the Word of God!
by Kevin Tillman | Oct 3, 2024 | Thoughts
“What one generation tolerates, the next generation will embrace.” – John Wesley
Everyone complains about the “younger generation”. As a GenXer (I think?) my generation was looked down on. I was part of the TV generation. We were warned that TV was warping our minds. We saw the rise of technology. Anyone remember the Commodore 64? Yep, I had one of those bad boys. We had a fascination with entertainment and technology. Fast forward to the Millennials or Gen Z. They haven’t known anything but technology. A phone that you can put in your pocket? They’ve never known anything different. They have been brought up in a world where information is not hard to find. Want to know who invented the game of Billiards, simply say, “Hey Siri”! And now, of course we have AI technology.
This is not a blog about “that younger generation” and how easy they have it. To be honest, I enjoy many of these new luxuries. I’m self taught on several things now because of YouTube. It is nice having all of that information available.
It’s so easy to look down on the next generation. It’s nothing new. It’s happened for centuries. It’s always happened. The point of this blog isn’t so much the advances and the technology.
What’s important is our view of the Bible, our view of sin, our view of values, our view of morals. Those are the things that should transcend. And, here is where it gets serious … John Wesley was right, it is our toleration, that leads to the future’s embracing. We can’t blame the next generation if we’ve tolerated it. Think about what that generation will tolerate, and the generation after that will embrace.
What can we do? Well, the most important thing is to make sure we are looking through a Biblical Worldview. It doesn’t matter what my opinion is. It doesn’t matter what the Boomers, or GenX, or the Millennials, or GenZ thinks. What matters is what does God say. What matters is what the Bible says.
There have always been gaps in understanding from generation to generation. Something new isn’t necessarily bad. For that matter, neither is something old. They’re just different. We should teach and train the younger generations, but we should also not be afraid to learn from them. I think the issues come when we focus our energies in the wrong directions. Honestly, who cares if the Gen Zers are using their phone all the time if they have the right worldview? Yes, social media can corrupt a mind. It can change thinking to an ungodly worldview. But, dare I say so can any other form of media. The point is that a proper worldview changes the lens that we are looking through. Want to change the younger generation? It’s not going to come by taking away their phones and technology. It’s not going to come by building a huge fence around them. It’s going to come by infiltrating their hearts and their minds with a proper worldview. Then, and only then, will they be able to face this world and all of it’s challenges.
by Kevin Tillman | Sep 19, 2024 | Thoughts
“Did the dentist hurt you when he drilled your tooth to remove the cavity?” “Yes.” “Did he harm you?” “No, he made me feel better.” “Hurt and harm are different,” I pointed out. “When you ate the sugar that gave you the cavity, did that hurt?” “No, it tasted good,” he said, with a smile that told me he was catching on. “Did it harm you?” “Yes.” “That’s my point. Things can hurt and not harm us. In fact they can even be good for us. And things that feel good can be very harmful to us.” – Dr. Henry Cloud
As human beings, we all desire to please self. We do the things that make us feel better, and we distance ourselves from the things that bring us discomfort. But, growth happens in pain. Growth happens in suffering. It hurts to workout, but that’s what makes the muscles strong. It’s a challenge to practice your skill every day, but that discipline is what brings results. Staying on a budget can be difficult, but that management will bring financial freedom.
The quote above points out that the things that make us feel good, can be very harmful. That’s not a hard point to prove, as we see it in so many areas of life. At it’s core that’s what sin is. I’ve heard old-school pastors say it this way, “if sin wasn’t fun nobody would be doing it.”. Sin is in essence doing what pleases us, and prioritizing that above everything else. At that point, our feeling, our emotion, and our desire are all that matters. They are in control. And, of course, that can bring consequences.
Conversely, the quote also shows that things that hurt aren’t necessarily harmful, but can actually be healing. Maybe it’s a relationship that needs to end. It’s a toxic situation. Breaking off that relationship and setting up boundaries hurts, it’s no fun. But, it brings a new level of healing. Possibly it’s time management. Saying “no” to hours of social media scrolling, or TV binging, or any other time waste, can be difficult. But, now there is time that can be replaced.
This doesn’t mean that everything that is fun is bad, and everything that is boring is good. Contrarily, God has given us a deep desire for purpose. At our deepest core we want to make a difference. We want to have meaning to our lives. When we find our thing and start following God’s plan we find new levels of contentment. Our boredom is no longer filled with bad habits and idols. Our time is now valuable and spent on our calling.
So, here’s the practical application … Start today with a simple self question, “what things in my life that are pleasing me, are actually harming me?”. Make a list, then pick the “one thing” that if changed would make the biggest difference. You can work through other things later, just start with one for now. Maybe that one feels like too big of a challenge at this point. OK, start with something else, even something small. Learn the process of denying self. It’s a learned skill. Next, ask, “what things am I not doing in life that if I did would make a major difference?”. Make a list, then pick one.
Life is all about choices. You have the same amount of time you’ve always had, and the same amount you always will have. If you keep doing what you’ve always done, you will get the same results you’ve always got. By saying “no” in one area of life, you can now say “yes” in another area of life. This might hurt for a while, but in the end it’s a choice that brings healing!
