A Blank sheet of Paper

     I know that the following statement may sound strange to you but I love paper. I love going to Office Depot and buying the stuff. The blankness of the pages as I turn them has always fascinated me. (O.K., this really does sound weird now that I look back at what I just wrote.)

     The only greater joy is when I pick up my Waterman pen and begin to write on those blank pages.  Think about it, when we write we are putting ourselves on paper. Our thoughts, fears, dreams and present day realities are now made visible. We are able to express ourselves to the world that surrounds us, warts and all.

     When I read an author I am taken to another world. Worlds in which the author wants us to walk around and become a part of. We see the buildings, the trees and even see the bend of the river before us. We can hear the sounds of the birds in the air. We can smell the freshness of a Sunday morning on a crisp Nebraska morning. In just four minutes of listening to the lyrics of a song we feel the passion of a young man and woman named Jack and Dianne who know that life will go on.

     The blankness of a page being filled by an author’s words is a beautiful thing. The blankness of a page being filled by an author’s pen can also be a nightmare. One written word can cause wars and rumors of wars. Incredible as it may sound just one word can change the world as we know it.

     When I pick up my Bible I am reminded of words that have changed my whole being and countless others. Hebrews tells me that this Word that I hold in my hands is more powerful and sharper than any two edged sword. This Word that I hold in my hands can pierce into the inner most part of my soul cutting and changing me like nothing else can.

     The Word though is also a person who is the very Son of God. When the Word came onto this canvas called earth men were able to see His glory. Men were also able to see the very embodiment of grace and truth.

John 1:1 ( ESV )

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¹In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

John 1:14 ( ESV )

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¹⁴And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

   

    When Eden was created it was like a blank page. It was filled with the beauty and freshness of hope. Adam and Eve walked with their creator in the cool of the morning.  When they allowed sin in their lives the canvas became darkened forever. Innocence lost, only grey could be seen upon the landscape. This was our lot in life.

     This is where the beauty comes in; the Word has come and brought light.  When He spoke lives were changed. Hearts that were once dead were now given new life. He was not satisfied with just staying in the heavens. No, the Word became flesh and of all the wildest things He would dwell among us.

     The Word took the hands of the cripples and made them whole. Just by His voice He was able to calm the raging seas, cast out the demon and give sight to the blind. The Word had the authority to do all of these things and even more. He spoke in parables, talked with leaders and held children in His arms. Yet, the most incredible words that he would ever speak was, “Father, Forgive them.”

     He takes the pages of our lives and makes them clean again. He wants to write His very image upon us. He wants to turn the blank and empty pages of our lives into something for His glory. How I pray that I will be willing to say to Him, “Then write away on the pages of my life and may I bring you glory when others read.”

Then hear from heaven and forgive

2 Chronicles 6:18-21 ( ESV )

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¹⁸“But will God indeed dwell with man on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you, how much less this house that I have built!

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¹⁹Yet have regard to the prayer of your servant and to his plea, O Lord my God, listening to the cry and to the prayer that your servant prays before you,

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²⁰that your eyes may be open day and night toward this house, the place where you have promised to set your name, that you may listen to the prayer that your servant offers toward this place.

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²¹And listen to the pleas of your servant and of your people Israel, when they pray toward this place. And listen from heaven your dwelling place, and when you hear, forgive.

     It was one of his Father’s greatest desires. His Daddy though would not able to build it or see it brought to its completion. Yet, he gathered the materials for his son to be able to build it. He shared his dream with his son and knew that his God would allow him to build it.

     David instilled in to his son the fact that the temple could not contain God in all of His glory. We know this to be true as Solomon would repeat this thought in 2 Chronicles 6:18. His glory could not be kept or held captive by no man. God is not confined by any object or any man. They knew that Heaven was the dwelling place of God in verse 21 and even that was too small to hold Him.  He is after all, The Great I am.

     No what David and Solomon wanted was a place where God’s people and servants could worship. The temple would be a place where they could cry out to their God, and He would hear them. The temple would be a place where they could go to Him and sense His presence. Their desire was to have a place where they could be intimate with their God.

     Solomon and the people of Israel would build such a place. They now assembled as a group on this glorious day of dedication. How would Solomon talk with his people on this special day? Unlike other kings and politicians after him, he would start the ceremony with prayer. He wanted to set the tone right off the bat that this place would be a House of Prayer. A place where one could meet and talk with God.

     The thing that blesses my heart the most through Solomon’s prayer is this one repeated line. “Then hear from heaven and forgive.”  This is repeated six times throughout Solomon’s prayer. Look at the following verses…2 Chronicles 6:21, 23, 25, 27, 30. And 39. He also pleads for the foreigner who calls out to God that God will hear them from heaven His dwelling place. He also prays that as God’s people go out to war that He will hear from heaven and maintain their cause.

     We as a people should be marked as those who say, “Then hear from heaven and forgive.” I pray this prayer daily to our God. Lord I need forgiveness. If you’re like me, you need forgiveness constantly. Sometimes I wonder why He would even hear me. How many times will I blow it? How many times will I fail to walk with the one who loves me the most?

     Here is the blessing for you and me. The new temple where God also chooses to dwell is within the heart of the believer. He still cannot be contained by either you or me but He willingly wants to dwell within us. What an amazing and incomprehensible thought. Like Solomon before us we can still cry out to our God and say, “Hear from heaven and forgive.” This same God will do it even though we do not even deserve His presence. He lovingly as our Father hears and forgives.

     How do I know this to be true? Look at 2 Chronicles 7:1-3 for your answer. This is what happened after Solomon had prayed.

2 Chronicles 7:1-3 ( ESV )

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¹As soon as Solomon finished his prayer, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the Lord filled the temple.

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²And the priests could not enter the house of the Lord, because the glory of the Lord filled the Lord’s house.

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³When all the people of Israel saw the fire come down and the glory of the Lord on the temple, they bowed down with their faces to the ground on the pavement and worshiped and gave thanks to the Lord, saying, “For he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever.”

     No matter where you are going or where you have been we have a God who hears and forgives. He wants His glory to fill our lives. He wants to forgive us and allow His fire to come down and purge us and cleanse us. He wants to forgive us so that His glory maybe shown. Why does He hear us? “For He is good, for His steadfast love endures forever.”