DANNY’S DESK
Declare Jesus – Develop Disciples – Glorify God
“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. 24 Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.”
Psalm 139:23-24
Hello!
Have you ever listened to the 1959 Dave Brubeck Quartet recording of a song called ‘Take 5’ with the amazing Joe Morello on drums? It’s a beauty! But recording the song proved so difficult that - after 40 minutes and more than 20 failed attempts - the producer suspended the session because one or another of the members kept losing the beat. Why? Because it’s in 5/4 time - which is like a waltz with an extra 2 beats added on the end? It’s quite tricky and very hard to play! If you want to see/hear what I mean, have a look at it on YouTube. (Dave Brubeck – Take Five (Official Video)). Why am I talking about some random jazz track? Well, because this song is all about the rhythm. If you don’t get the rhythm right, then it just doesn’t work – it doesn’t flow.
As a drummer, it’s my role to set the rhythm for the band to follow. Most times I get it right, but there are certainly times when I don’t - and the end result isn’t pretty! (Have you ever seen ballroom dancers fall over on the dance floor?) And so, I need to practice – and keep at it - until I’ve got it ‘in the pocket!’ (A bit of musical slang!)
And I find that it’s pretty much the same in my walk with Jesus. “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.” (John 10:27). If I don’t dedicate myself a ‘rhythm’ in my relationship with Him, then, I just don’t feel like I’m ‘in the pocket’ in terms of my faith life or my spiritual growth. The writer of Proverbs says: “And so, my children, listen to me, for all who follow my ways are joyful. 33 Listen to my instruction and be wise. Don’t ignore it. 34 Joyful are those who listen to me, (8:32-34). So, for me to keep in rhythm with my Lord and Saviour, it’s a daily re-dedication to 3 things:
Praying; Reading the Bible; and Listening to what Jesus is saying to me.
And I have found - especially in recent times - that if I’m not doing these 3 things, then I lose my rhythm and start to try to do things in my own strength - rather than in His. (Cue falling ballroom dancers!)
I don’t want to live like that and I don’t want my ‘song’ to be out of Rhythm with Him - and His plan for me. I want to strive to be like those who Jesus talks about in Luke 11:18 - “But even more blessed are all who hear the word of God and put it into practice.”
What about you? What do you do to maintain your ‘rhythm’ with Jesus?
Have a great week!
Danny ... See MoreSee Less
Declare Jesus – Develop Disciples – Glorify God
‘Kind words are like honey - sweet to
the soul and healthy for the body.’
Proverbs 16:24 NLT
Hello!
How often - when we are confronted with an unexpected ‘interruption’; or change of routine; or an unexpected visitor - do we immediately jump to an unkind reaction? What about when we receive a less-than- positive email, phone call or text? I’m going to put my hand up straight away! Reasonably frequently? There are times when I really don‘t welcome the ‘interruption’. It may be because I’m right in the middle of something (like writing this Danny’s Desk!?) Or it may be because right in that moment I simply don’t have the capacity to engage with either the person or the issue. But that doesn’t mean I can’t be kind. Alexander MacLaren said: “Kindness makes a person attractive. If you would win the world, melt it, do not hammer it.”
Writing in the ‘Dictionary of Burning Words of Brilliant Writers’, he also says: “Do not let the empty cup be your first teacher of the blessings you had when it was full. Do not let a hard place here and there in the bed destroy your rest. Seek, as a plain duty, to cultivate a buoyant, joyous sense of the crowded kindness of God in your daily life.”
Greek philosopher Plato said: “Kindness is more than deeds. It is an attitude, an expression, a look, a touch. It is anything that lifts another person.” A question to ask ourselves then is: Am I ‘nice’ or am I ‘kind?’ Neither are wrong answers by the way!) People are considered nice when they are polite, but kindness is - I think - a much deeper attribute or attitude. Kindness goes out of its way. A nice person might give someone on the street money when they ask for it. A kind person will take them to a nearby café and sit and have a meal with them. I’m not saying you have to buy a meal for everyone who asks! No - this is about having a default setting of kindness – for whatever person or issue you are confronted with. And we all need to work on this because the minute we think we’ve got kindness ‘covered’, is the moment we react unkindly when confronted with an unexpected interruption or issue. Galatians 5:22 talks about how the Holy Spirit – dwelling within us – produces ‘kindness’ in us, and that ‘there is no law against being kind!’
There are many examples in the Bible of Jesus being more than nice – of being kind. When Jesus was teaching about revenge, in Matthew 5:40-42 He said: “If anyone demands that you carry his gear for a mile, carry it two miles…” (NIV). (Out of it’s way kindness.) And when He interacted with people who were shunned by the rest of society; when he healed those who considered ‘unclean’; when He spoke into the lives of the deranged and possessed; and no doubt in hundreds – perhaps thousands of acts of kindness that are not recorded in the Bible!
‘Crowd yourself with kindness’ (MacLaren) and ask yourself the question:
Am I being nice (Great!), or am I being kind? (Fantastic!)
Have a great week!
Danny ... See MoreSee Less
Danny's Desk
Declare Jesus – Develop Disciples – Glorify God
‘Before daybreak…, Jesus got up and went out
to an isolated place to pray.’
Mark 1:35 NLT
Hello!
I’m not a huge fan of silence! And there are times when I find it very difficult to just sit and reflect - and be silent. There always seems to be a thousand things running around my head vying for my attention. What’s that trivia question about goldfish having a 10 second attention span?
Why is it so hard at times to just ... be… silent?
It has to be said though that just about every time I make actually make the effort to just sit in silence and to listen for the voice of God or the prompting of the Holy Spirit, I am never disappointed! When we make the effort to just sit and listen to what it is that Jesus might be wanting to say to us, the results will always be worthwhile. The answers may not be what we were expecting, but they will certainly be what His will is for us - in that moment.
Jesus was a regular participant of being silent in the presence of God. And He did that in various places and at different times of the day and night:
‘… Jesus often withdrew to the wilderness for prayer. (Luke 5:16).
‘… he went up into the hills by himself to pray.’ (Mark 6:45).
‘… Jesus went up on a mountain to pray, and he prayed to God all night.’ (Luke 6:12).
In the presence of holiness, the wisest thing for us to do would be to simply be quiet.
Though there will be times when we might be tempted to interrupt this movement of God in our lives with our own words and actions, these are precisely the moments where there is really nothing at all that we need to say. We just need to listen.
Can I encourage you today to withdraw and take some time to just experience His presence around you; be awed by His work in you and in the world around you.
And be silent.
Have a great week!
Danny ... See MoreSee Less
