Thoughts from the Front

Earth to Zach

Fri, 7 Aug 2009 12:21:45 -0700

The Harvest Project is coming to an end. So now what? Good question... I wonder that myself from time to time. I will be heading to Trinity Graduate School on August 15th to complete a one-year Masters program in Communication and Culture. After that? I don’t really know yet. My passion and desire is to continue in missions, but I it is not clear yet as to what this is going to look like.

I am going to keep this website up for at least another year. And I will continue to post blog entries throughout the coming year as well. So for those of you who want to stay connected and hear what God is teaching me you can do so here. I may even send out some email updates from time to time to those that are interested. If you are not on my email update list you can write to me at zacann@netzero.net.

Thanks so much to all who have prayed and supported me over the past two years. I hope many of you will continue to do so over the coming year as well.

True repentance

Tue, 21 Jul 2009 11:51:44 -0700

I have been reading through a wonderful book called Living Water by Brother Yun (author of The Heavenly Man). There is a chapter in this book called repentance. And in this chapter he states, “You see, we are all called to run a race for Jesus, and repentance is the starting line of that race.” And true repentance, he says, does not “simply mean that people must confess their sins and ask forgiveness” but rather our “lives, desires, and plans must be surrendered to God.” As it says in Romans 12:

“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

I just collapse before verses like these. This is not an easy road to take. Repentance is serious business. It is not merely a nonchalant “I’m sorry” (which I do to God all the time). Repentance is a realization of how ugly my sin is before a holy God. Furthermore it is a realization of my inadequacy to do anything righteous. Asking for forgiveness is not the same as repaying a debt. It is saying, “I have done great wrong, I cannot make it right, I deserve punishment, and I am begging for forgiveness.” This is a humble road.

I’m going to stop giving you my thoughts on this and share with you some insight by Larry Crabb. I hope Larry’s meditation on Psalm 51 convicts and encourages you as much as it has me. Bon appetite!

____________

A Path Leading Downward
A meditation on Psalm 51
By Larry Crabb

Repentant people realize that inexcusable wrong can either be judged or forgiven, never understood and overlooked, and so they beg for forgiveness with no thought of deserving it. Truly repentant people are the ones who begin to grasp God’s amazing grace, the ones who know that they need only confess to experience the forgiveness that is always there in infinite supply.

Whether we are adulterers or thoughtless people, the problem with all of us is that we stubbornly regard our interpersonal failures not as inexcusably selfish choices, but as understandable mistakes. The things that people do to us seems more like the former; the things we do to them more like the latter.

Excuse-making has been a natural tendency in people ever since Adam blames Eve and Eve blamed the snake. Without some means of self-justification, we would be forced to face ourselves squarely as we really are, corrupt by God’s standards and deserving punishment.

And seeing ourselves as we are would mean taking our place as condemned sinners, worthy of judgement, powerless to improve ourselves, humbled that our very best deeds provide no defense, and utterly at the mercy of a righteous angry judge. This does not sound like much fun. Surely a path to the top would never begin with a descent this steep. How can joy emerge from such misery?

Perhaps the hardest think to get through our heads is that this painful point of nakedness and humility is not only where life begins, but also where joyful growth continues.

Humbled by the depths of God

Mon, 20 Jul 2009 13:22:25 -0700

"It is easier to fight for one's principles than to live up to them." -Alfred Adler

"God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few." -Ecclesiastes 5:2

I was confronted by both of these lines a few days ago... one from a devotional and the other from my morning Bible reading. Do you ever talk about things that you don’t understand as if you understand them? Or talk strongly about things that you do not hold to strongly in your own life? I sin in this area a lot. It all stems from a pride of thinking I know... and the reality is I don’t.

Paul put it well when he told the Corinthians, “I am determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.” Paul is a well educated man, he has gone through a lot of hard lessons, he has endured much for the sake of the gospel, has seen much of the known world, AND YET he is determined to know nothing but the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I want to be more like that. My resume is a lot less impressive than Paul’s and yet I so eagerly want to know everything around everyone.

A few weeks ago I had a discussion with a friend on missions. I like this topic because I like to think I know a lot about missions. After all, it has been my job these past two years. But in our discussion I got lost in the magnitude of missions and how grand and majestic the plan of God is. It took me longer than it should have to realize I was not being humble in what I was talking about.

I found I can often say good things and true things about God, but in a way that is sinful. I take pride in knowing those things when neither the truth nor the knowledge of the truth originated with me. It is all from God. Going back to Paul, he clearly states that even the good news of the Gospel is not from him... “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him—these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God.”

As we come to God’s word and use God’s word let us consider this: The word of God is living and active (Heb 4:12). God’s ways and thoughts are infinitely higher than ours (Isaiah 55:9). Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! (Romans 11:33).

We (I) ought to come to God and his word with such humility and awe and wonder. There is a powerful mysterious depth to His ways... we have not even begun to understand the outskirts of His glory. But we do have truth, given and revealed to us! May we be good, humble stewards of God’s word and his truth!!

Happy Birthday, Jon

Tue, 14 Jul 2009 18:46:08 -0700

I look up to you... and in more ways that one. Yes, you are taller than me :) But I also have learned a great deal from you in regards to being a servant, taking chances, and finding joy in simple things. I know I offer my advice to you all the time... even when you don’t ask for it. Thanks for being gracious to me as we both seek to honor God more and more each day of our lives. It is God—not our advice—that ultimately leads us to maturity and completes the work He began in us. In light of this, here is your birthday poem :)

God Completes a Work Begun
By Zach Cann

When all our efforts are undone
And we are back where we’d begun
When all seems lost and strivings fail
And there’s no wind within our sail
Oh, wait my brother, wait with me
For herein lies the mystery
Of Christ, the perfect Lamb of God,
Who orchestrates His will unflawed,
And by His blood and saving grace
Redeems us from our former place
Of slavery to death and sin—
The chains that bind the soul within.
This is love! That Christ would die
And bear the cross for you and I,
Feeble sinners who cannot pay
The debt we owe to Him each day—
Slaves to a law we cannot meet!
O God come and in us complete
The work begun through Christ your Son,
Who for our sake, the battle won!
Grant us wisdom in small measure
Make your Word our life and treasure;
May it sustain us till we die,
And may You be our whole supply!

Welcome to the freak show

Wed, 1 Jul 2009 18:41:03 -0700

“The race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to the intelligent, nor favor to those with knowledge, but time and chance happen to them all.” Ecclesiastes 9:11

I read through the entire book of Ecclesiastes this morning and I came to one grand conclusion: There is too much of the illusion of certainty in my life. What do I mean by that? There are too many things in life I take for granted, too many convictions/beliefs I am prideful about, and too many blessings I put my trust in. Ecclesiastes makes it clear that all my pursuits are really NOTHING (it is vanity)... even seemingly good pursuits. Seeking after wisdom and knowledge—Vanity! Working hard to store up wealth and security—Vanity! Pursuing justice and peace in the world—Vanity! Ecclesiastes puts it well: “Vanity of vanities! All is vanity!” (1:2).

And this is where we might ask... Wait, why are all these good things vanity? And herein lies our problem. We are sinful people, we are evil, none of us does good... Psalms 14, Romans 3, and even our world all attest to this. We are not capable of good. We are not capable of making a difference. The reality is, we are the problem... we are the freak show. We can try with all our might to gain knowledge and wisdom for ourselves, but we are weak, frail, finite creatures. We all are slaves of time, circumstance, and death.

So what are we to do? Ecclesiastes graciously ends with a call to something of meaning... “The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of Man” (12:13). Our purpose, as it were, is to fear God and obey His commandments... that is it. If we try to save the world, gain knowledge, obtain wealth, enjoy life, pursue happiness, or anything else apart from our fear and obedience of God it is USELESS! Why? The message of the whole Bible is that we can do nothing apart from God... He gives us life (Genesis 1, Psalm 139), he sustains life (Colossians 1), He provides for needs (2 Corinthians 9), He gives and He takes away (Job 1). It is all Him! Even the ability to trust in God, to be cleansed from sin, and to be made new is all from God! “He who did not spare His own son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him freely give us all things?” (Romans 8:32).

When we grasp this we will soon realize two things... First, we are utterly and completely out of control. Time and chance happen to all of us. So no matter how confident, secure, and content we feel it is all a lie! There is nothing of value—nothing redeemable—apart from Christ. Christ became accursed for us, bore all the punishment for sin, and provided all the perfection required by God. In this way, we can begin to truly fear, love, cherish, and obey our great God.

Through this lens I look at my life... and it is scary. There are so many things I take confidence in apart from God. There are numerous ways I take God’s providence for granted, instead of receiving all things with thankfulness and joy. For example, I still have not found a place to stay in Chicago for when I go there for grad school in a month, and my heart gets sooo anxious! Or when my car broke down and I had an unexpected expense, I got so angry, fearful, and frustrated. Where is my hope? Where is my contentment and meaning rooted? If it’s in my money, that is stupid because there is not much of that anyway :) If it’s in my family, that is foolish because they have problems of their own (they are human like me). If it’s in the economy... well, you know where that got us. I could go on. The reality is I DO put too much trust in all of these things, and I ought not to. This is the freak show... an imperfect, weak, and foolish people trying to accomplish great, good, and perfect things apart from God. Folks, it won’t happen. Exit the show, pursue Christ, and cast all your needless worries and fears on him.

Searching for self-control

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 14:59:38 -0700

This morning I woke up with a lot on my mind. So many thoughts and questions were pouring through my brain it was hard to focus in on any one of them. Ever have moments like that? It can be an anxious experience as we realize just how out-of-control we really are. Life and circumstance can overwhelm us.

Laziness is one of my most besetting sins... I say “one of” because there are many. The thought that says, “I can do that later” must pass through my mind 100 times a day. So it is no surprise when my sin comes to haunt me and confront me with the reality that it’s joys and pleasures were false and fleeting.

I am sitting here with a to-do list that would make anyone dizzy. It’s not that I am busy... it’s the result of laziness... wanting things other than what God has given me to do today. Know the feeling? If so, I have something convicting and encouraging to share with you. Whatever your sin... whatever your false desires... God is aware and has given us a way of escape.

I read this the other day during my devotions. It is a quote from a book entitled Living Water by Brother Yun, a Chinese Christian who has endured much persecution for the sake of the Gospel. Here are his words for Christian beset by their lusts for things other than what God has for them:

“People can become controlled by their lust, which causes them to make ignorant and wrong decisions. They ultimately pay a very heavy price for their indiscretions. Many people have told me how they wish they would have known the consequences of an action they took, which destroyed their marriages, broke their families and brought untold misery to their lives.

Thankfully, God has provided a way for His children so we don’t have to be overcome by fleshly temptation. One of the fruits of the Spirit is self-control. This doesn’t mean that we control ourselves, but it means we must submit to the Holy Spirit who lives inside of us and who helps us to fear God and hate sin.

There is an important truth that I think many Christians have not properly grasped: it is only the grace of God that can help and train us to overcome temptation.”

I had never thought of self control in this way. It is not us taking the reigns of our life and trying to gain control of our runaway sins. It is submission to God and His Spirit to teach and train our hearts to love what we don’t love, enjoy what we don’t enjoy, be excited by things we are bored with, live for things we are dead to. We do not naturally fear God or hate sin... we need God to do a changing work.

So as we fight to “lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us” may we learn ever more to “fix our eyes on Jesus, the AUTHOR and PERFECTOR of our faith” (Hebrews 12:1-2 emphasis added). We’ve no doubt heard it and said it before, but we need to hear it again and again... it is the Gospel.

May we find self-control in His Spirit today.

High-minded irrationality

Tue, 16 Jun 2009 15:53:00 -0700

Today I read through the entire book of Proverbs in one sitting. Doing so made me realize that in the midst of all the good advice, one theme runs throughout the whole book: I am stupid and in desperate need of wisdom. None of us has wisdom naturally... wisdom is something to be sought after, asked for, and held onto. Proverbs reminds me over and over that my natural tendency—indeed my only tendency without Christ—is to do the very things that will destroy me. “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death” (Proverbs 14:12 and 16:25).

This past weekend I went to the Resolved Conference in Palm Springs, CA. One of the speakers was John Piper. While speaking on the topic of sin, Piper made an interesting remark about Satan’s actions in the crucifixion of Jesus. Luke’s gospel tells us, “Satan entered into Judas... and he went away and conferred with the chief priests and officers how he might betray Jesus to them.” The question is—why would Satan do something that would ultimately lead to his own destruction? Helping send Jesus to the cross is helping fulfill years of prophesy that Jesus would take away victory from death and wrath from sinners. Why would Satan do that? To this Piper answered, “Sinning is irrational. If we were rational people we would be sinless.” Satan is smart because he knows the Word of God (better than we do) and that his destruction is imminent, but he is stupid at the same time, because he does not obey nor honor God. He stands in defiance of God, and truth be told, there is no more foolish or stupid act.

Proverbs waves this banner of truth all throughout its 31 chapters: Sinning is stupid—it is irrational. I lie, steal, cheat, lust, and trust in myself because it feels or seems right. In reality, nothing could be further from the truth. In trying to gain life, I lose it. Consider what Proverbs says about the way of foolishness:

The woman Folly is loud; she is seductive and knows nothing. She sits at the door of her house; she takes seats on the high places of the town, calling to those who pass by, “Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!” And to him who lacks sense she says, “Stolen water is sweet, and bread eaten in secret is pleasant.” But he does not know that the dead are there, that her guests are in the depths of Sheol.

Foolishness is serious. As intelligent and well-meaning as I may think I am, irrationality will lead me to hell. So what is the solution? How do I escape from my stupidity?

Praise God the answers to these questions also resounds throughout Proverbs! “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6). And how do we trust in the Lord? What does it look like to not lean on our understanding? Proverbs is full of actions we can take... fear the Lord (1:7), make your ear attentive (2:2), incline your heart (2:2), call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding (2:3), guard your way (5:8), keep my commandments and bind them on your fingers (7:3), love discipline (12:1), heed reproof (13:18), commit your work to the Lord (16:3), do not be envious of evil men (24:1), and the list could go on. What is the point of all this? Answer: DO SOMETHING to counteract stupidity. Stupidity is our natural course of action... we have to fight for wisdom. Proverbs tells us to “hold fast to wisdom” (3:18).

Granted, we are all sinners. We do not seek wisdom and fight against stupidity as we ought... even as Christians. There still remain elements of irrationality in our lives as reflected by our sinning. So what hope do we have of ever fully coming to trust in the Lord and to lean on him and to receive his promises of life and joy? Proverbs does not leave us to wonder at this either. The promises of God to uphold us and sustain us and redeem us are all over Proverbs. In chapter three we read, “Do not be afraid of sudden terror or of the ruin of the wicked when it comes.” This would have been our lot. So what is our hope? What reason do we have to not be afraid?... “for the Lord will be your confidence, and will keep your foot from being caught.” Our hope is from the Lord. Our strength is from the Lord. Our ability to not get caught in the stupidity of sin is from the Lord.

Oh that we would learn to fear the Lord, cry out for understanding, and cling to wisdom. And then may we rest assured that “the victory belongs to the Lord” (Proverbs 21:31).

Death is good for you

Mon, 15 Jun 2009 12:09:26 -0700

Death is your diagnosis—it is your condition. The book of Proverbs is dedicated to showing the follies of sin: “it takes the life of its possessors” (1:19). And we indeed possess sin. We are stamped and defined by sin. Romans 3 leaves no doubt when it says, “There is no one who does good not even one.” And lest we think that death is only to come, Ephesians 2 reminds us that without Christ we ARE already “dead in our transgressions and sins.” We are dead men.

Death is also the cure. Death is the prescription Jesus fills out for those who seek a remedy. In Luke 9, starting in verse 23, Jesus says, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.” Death is the cure to the death that ails us. Now how does this make sense? We are talking about two different deaths. Consider this passage from Romans 14, “For to this end Christ died and rose again that he might be LORD of the living and the dead.” The death of Jesus is the cure to the death brought about by sin. Jesus’ death and resurrection is the only solution to our deadness in our sin.

Human beings hate death. In our human weakness it plagues us, chases us, and defeats us. It is the inevitable event that will separate us from the one thing we value most—our lives. To deny ourselves, pick up our cross, suffer, and die with Jesus is LUDICROUS! Everything within our beings resists it. We think, “We have rights. We have desires. We don’t want to be beset by physical death or our spiritual deadness.” Without Christ’s work in our hearts and minds, we will never desire God, his Son, and the cross that comes with it.

To this some might reasonably ask, “Zach, why the depressing message?... death, death, death. What a bummer! Where is the joy?” To this I would respond with another seemingly confusing truth... Christ’s death in us produces life. Looking back to Luke 9 we see that Christ calls us to die SO THAT we might have life. In the same way that Christ’s suffering was for a time and his Glory is eternal, so also our experiencing death with Christ is temporary and our absorbence into the glory of Christ is forever.

The death of Christ is good for you in that it allows for the death of sin in you. In dying to our sin and ourselves through Christ we gain the amazing confidence to say with the apostle Paul, “O death, where is your sting? O grave, where is your victory” (1 Corinthians 15:55).

For the journey

Fri, 5 Jun 2009 10:44:15 -0700

I have been wanting to write this blog for a long time. Back in March, my friend Tad Klein travelled with me in Peru for three weeks. During that time we had numerous opportunities to talk about God, His word, and how it relates to our lives. On one such occasion we were staying at a house that had a guitar and Tad offered to play me a song that he had written. It was amazing! I have been bugging him to get it recorded for weeks now, and he finally found some time to do so. The song, entitled Walls, is a heartfelt hymn to sufferings and uncertainties we all face. Sometimes suffering can seem like a long road that keeps going and going and going... will it last a week? a month? a year? a decade? And if so, will I have the strength to make it?

You can listen to the song above and read the lyrics below. I hope you are encouraged.

~ ~ ~

Walls
Music and Lyrics by Tad Klein

Well it’s a long cold road
When you’re walkin’ and you find yourself alone
Alone at the edge of night

Yes it’s a long cold road
When you’re walkin’ all alone and you wonder
If you’ll walk on till the end

Chorus
So don’t be afraid to open up the door
And let me in, I will carry you my dear
And don’t build a wall between you
And the only ones who’ll be there to catch your fall

Cause it’s a long cold road
When you listen and you wonder if the silence
Is death knockin at the door

Yes it’s a long cold road
When the only songs you hear are the voices
Knockin inside your head

Chorus

Bridge
Cause I know what it’s like when the days are long
And the nights are longer still
When those cloudy skies rain sorrows down
And you have drunk your fill
When you lie awake and you wrestle with the ghosts
Inside your head
Yes I know what it’s like to be weary from searchin
For some rest

Well it’s a long cold road
When time feels like nothing more than hours
Carrying you toward the grave

Yes it’s a long cold road
When you’re fallin through the ice into the fire
And it all feels just the same

The Gospel on a Tuesday

Tue, 2 Jun 2009 10:41:41 -0700

Today was one of those days I would rather not repeat. I was mostly unproductive... thinking about what I needed to do, but not actually doing anything about it. Then I got a call from my family. Things on the home front are not so good at the moment either. As is usually the case, all this unrest is the result of stress, circumstance, and sin... lots of sin. So my Tuesday was pretty much defined by laziness and anxiety, which has got to be one of the worst combinations. Ever have days like this?

Whenever I am confronted by such a day as Tuesday turned out to be I try to end the day in the Bible. There is nothing more calming, soothing, and reassuring as the Word of God to His children. I read Romans 5. Here are the first 5 verses I read:

“Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.”

I read and reread these verses several times. I obviously love the promises of hope and peace and grace and love. These are such wonderful things to hear—especially when confronted with our miserable stress, circumstances, and sins. However, even more important than the “what” is the “how.” I know WHAT the promises are, but HOW do I receive them? How do I get at that love, grace, hope, and peace when they all seem soooo far away?

We see the answer three times in five verses. We receive these promised things through Jesus Christ and His gift of the Holy Spirit to us. Sounds like a Sunday School response, doesn’t it?

This is when I turned to Milton Vincent’s A Gospel Primer, because I am trying to teach myself what it means to come to Jesus. When I hear that Jesus is the answer and that His name is above all other names, do I realize the depth of truth behind those statements? Why is Jesus the answer? Why is His name above all other names? Why such magnitude given to some statement I take for granted? And so I turned to Vincent’s chapter entitled “Reasons to Rehearse the Gospel Daily.” I wish I could copy it all for you here... it is REALLY good! But I will share one part that caught my attention reading through it this time. Milton says:

“For the gospel is the one great permanent circumstance in which I live and move; and every hardship in my life is allowed by God only because it serves His gospel purposes in me. When I view my circumstances in this light, I realize that the gospel is not just one piece of good news that fits into my life somewhere among all the bad. I realize instead that the gospel makes genuinely good news out of every other aspect of my life, including my severest trials.”

And although this is Milton speaking it is not his truth. It is God’s. In James 1 it says, “Consider it all joy, my brothers, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect effect, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”

These truths remind me of how vast and powerful is the redeeming work of Jesus. His sacrifice for me was so complete and so perfect that he can use the greatest tragedy (from my perspective) for my greatest good. Jesus can change the laziness that lies at my core. He can redeem the hours and hours I have wasted selfishly. He can restore joy and love to my family. He can and He will. And for this reason I have cause to rejoice and not be discouraged. I have reason to be responsible today with the tasks before me, to pray for my family and love them, and to come before my Jesus to worship. Why? Because of the good news that Jesus is to my sinful, wayward life.