Mindful of Me - Wonderful Counselor

Welcome/Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas, Prairie Lakes!

I’m not sure where you’re joining us from this weekend, because we’ve got campuses all over Iowa—but where I’m at, it’s “beginning to look a lot like Christmas.”

Boy, that escalated quickly. From rain to wind to snow in some places. Bring it on, I say.

Hey: this weekend is the first weekend in a time of year we call Advent—the last few weeks leading up to Christmas, during which we kinda anticipate and prepare ourselves to receive the gift that Jesus is.

And so | around here at Prairie Lakes, we start saying “Merry Christmas” to one another.

So, across our campuses, let’s practice together. I’ll say it to you, then you say it back to me:

“Merry Christmas!”

Series Intro: Mindful of Me

Alright. Hey—for Advent this year, we’re doing a series we’re calling “Mindful of Me.” And there’s two Christmas stories in the Bible we’ll be in each weekend—a prophecy about Christmas, and then there’s that prophecy fulfilled.

Through the prophet Isaiah, God promises to send us someone he calls “Immanuel,” which means “God With Us.” And this God-with-us person will help us in (4) ways:

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He’ll be our Wonderful Counselor, our Mighty God, our Everlasting Father, and our Prince of Peace.

And when God moves to fulfill this prophecy and send this Immanuel, he does so through a woman named Mary—who exclaims how amazing it is that God would be mindful of her… that he saw her and chose her and fulfilled this through her.

So that’s where we’re headed as we walk towards this hope we have in Jesus during Advent.

Weekend Intro: Hopeless But Seen

Let’s dive in this weekend. Here’s the question:

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When was the last time you felt hopeless—like:

No matter what you do, the outcome will not change for the better?

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I feel that way sometimes when the Hawks play. Or when Giancarlo Stanton, the Yankees’ designated hitter, tries to hit a breaking ball.

I’ve felt that way in certain conversations with certain people before. No matter what I do, I’m not going to change their mind. No matter the approach I take, they aren’t gonna be receptive to what I have to say.

I sometimes feel that way about politics and many politicians.

Because:

No matter how much I scream at TV on Saturday mornings about the 15th run play in a row,

Or the third way-out-in-front swing and a whiff;

No matter how much I game plan that conversation or pray before I ask them if we can talk;

No matter how many news articles I link to or well-thought-out social media posts I write…

It’s hopeless.

It doesn’t seem like my efforts are going to make the Hawkeyes pass,

Make Stanton hold off,

Fix that person,

Or fix our political system.

(Pause.)

When was the last time you felt hopeless?

(Pause.)

Here’s another question—with a much more positive tone:

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When was the last time you felt seen—like:

Someone intuitively understood your situation and provided exactly what you needed?

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There are a lot of things my wife is good at, and a lot of things about her (apart from what she does for me) that I admire and am very grateful for. There’s a lot of things about who she is as a person that make me feel very lucky to be her husband.

But the thing that I probably think most often about when I’m thinking about how lucky I am is this:

She gets me.

Because she sees me.

A week ago or so I was actually feeling kinda hopeless about a few things; just one of those days where, right when you feel like you’re able to get your head above water for a bit, only to be plunged right back down even deeper.

And she intuited that, asking me how I was doing. And I shared with her what was going on.

And you have to kinda keep this in mind:

This is a woman who not only works full time but leads at a high level. She directs a foundation. Successfully.

And she’s the president of the booster club for our son’s high school band.

And she’s the primary point of contact and care for all of our kids stuff.

And even when she asked me how I was doing, she had gotten home from serving at church with our daughter and was in the process of making lunch for us. Thats who she is.

And after she heard how I was doing, she empathized—and then started to do other things like break down all of these boxes and get them out to the recycling. Stuff that I probably should and would have done eventually—she just did it. For me.

Understood and provided for. When was the last time you felt that? Felt… seen?

(Pause.)

Friends:

Here’s the good news that comes our way during Christmastime—the “merry” behind our “Merry Christmas:”

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At Christmas, in Christ, God sees us.

In our hopelessness He brings hope.

Isaiah 9:1-7

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Merry Christmas.

Exegesis: Isaiah 9:1-7

Turn in your Bibles with me to Isaiah 9:1-7.

(Explain where to find Isaiah.)

As you find that, here’s what you need to know about what you’re reading:

God’s people, the nation of Israel, are divided into two nations: Israel in the north, and Judah in the south

Isaiah is a prophet—delivering messages from God to God’s people.

Isaiah lives in the southern kingdom of Judah, in and around its capital, Jerusalem.

Isaiah lives during the time of (4) Judean kings: Uzziah, Jothan, Ahaz, and Hezekiah. Some are great, godly leaders; others are evil, oppressive leaders.

So… it’s a roller coaster of a time. A fragile time. A time where the next crisis is right around the corner.

In fact…

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Over the course of his life, Isaiah saw:

the height of Judah’s prosperity (under king Uzziah)

the moral decline under king Ahaz

the seige of Jerusalem by the Assyrians in 701 B.C.

the fall of the northern kingdom of Israel to the Assyrians in 722 B.C.

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He lived through the peak and died in the valley. Isaiah saw and experienced firsthand just how fragile and unpredictable this world can be; what God allows to happen.

And right in the middle of all of it, God tells him to prophesy this—verse 1, Isaiah 9:

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Isaiah 9:1–2 “Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those who were in distress. In the past he humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the future he will honor Galilee of the nations, by the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan— The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.”

Isaiah 9:3–4 “You have enlarged the nation and increased their joy; they rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest, as warriors rejoice when dividing the plunder. For as in the day of Midian’s defeat, you have shattered the yoke that burdens them, the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor.”

Isaiah 9:5–6 “Every warrior’s boot used in battle and every garment rolled in blood will be destined for burning, will be fuel for the fire. For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

Isaiah 9:7 “Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.”

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We’re gonna be camping out a lot in these 7 verses this weekend and over the next few. So: this is a great time for you to have a Bible—your Bible—right in front of you so that you can kinda look down and let God speak to you as he so often does when we read his Word.

Remember what we said right before we read this prophecy:

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At Christmas, in Christ, God sees us.

In our hopelessness He brings hope.

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If you were a contemporary of Isaiah—a Judean or an Israelite who lived at the same time he did—

When you read those first few lines of this prophecy, that’s exactly what you’d think:

One day, God will see us. One day, he’ll bring hope—even in the areas of our lives and our world that feel hopeless.

“the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali”—those are tribal lands in the northern kingdom of Israel. They were the first to be overrun and fall to the invading Assyrian army.

Isaiah says that God “humbled” these lands and their people as he allowed them to be conquered (of course, after centuries of disobedience and warning).

Humility In Our Hopelessness

And I know all of that feels a little academic and historical. But, believe it or not, there’s an important point for us in this ancient history. It’s not a feel-good kind of point. But it is a crucial starting point.

Here it is:

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God can use our hopelessness to bring us humility.

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I don’t know what your hopelessness looks like or feels like—or why you even feel it in the first place.

Maybe you feel hopeless because it feels like you’ve screwed something up beyond repair—or that someone else has screwed something up with you that has just left you broken in a way that feels like can never be fixed.

Maybe, like the people of Israel, you’re suffering under circumstances that feel beyond your control. There’s someone who has influence over you that you can’t do anything about. Or maybe it’s not a person; it’s a condition. A diagnosis. A sickness. Something that you’re just having to carry and live under.

I don’t know what it is or why you’ve got it. But:

With God, whatever your hopelessness is, no matter how it got introduced into your life, here’s the deal:

One of the things that makes God | God | is his ability to bring good things out of bad.

And if you let him, he can bring humility out of your hopelessness. He can bring a softness out of your brokenness. Because:

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God can use our hopelessness to bring us humility.

When you admit that you’re stuck, you can start looking for help.

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Listen:

You can’t fix yourself. I know everyone these days has some sort of hack to make hopefulness out of hopelessness. But all of it eventually turns out like they all turn out: a gimmick that made someone a little bit of money by providing you with some temporary relief and some brief optimism.

But the deepest problems we have, though we so deeply desire them to be solved, always seem to rear their ugly head in our lives once again. Despite our best efforts.

And while that feels like bad news, it’s actually the best news in the world.

Because God knows that.

He sees that. Because He sees you.

And like a watchful parent who lets their child reach for something just beyond their grasp, your heavenly Father just waits for you to see your own predicament.

Because when you admit that you’re stuck—when you humble yourself—

When you accept that you can’t

You can start looking for help from Someone who can.

The next few lines of Isaiah’s prophecy actually say exactly that:

“in the future he will honor Galilee of the nations, by the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan.”

This was a nothing area in Israel.

Like Nebraska is to this great country of ours, so Galilee was to Israel. Ain’t got nothing going on. It’s what you had to get through | to get to where you were trying to go.

After Christmas we’re gonna hop in the truck and head out to Colorado to see some family. It’s a route we’ve taken a lot over the years. And the deal my wife and I have is this:

I drive us to Omaha.

Then she takes over until about North Platte.

And then I drive us the rest of the way.

Because I’d rather drive 8 of the 12 hours than have to be awake for the 4 hours of purgatory that exist between Omaha and North Platte.

(Pause.)

Galilee wasn’t a place of hope. Nothing about it was special.

Until…

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Matthew 4:12–14 “Jesus… withdrew to Galilee. Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, which was by the lake in the area of Zebulun and Naphtali—to fulfill what was said through the prophet Isaiah:”

Matthew 4:15–17 “Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles— the people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.” From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”

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In the most nondescript of places,

After centuries of silence,

700 years after Isaiah’s world collapsed around him and the rest of God’s people,

When hopelessness reigned as king,

A new king came,

Inviting us to change our minds about what was possible with God.

This is what Jesus meant when he called us to repent: change your mind about what’s possible with God—and when you do, to change the direction you’re living to be more in line with how God is calling you to live.

And the reason Jesus can make that invitation to us | rests on an even bolder claim of his:

By claiming that “the kingdom of heaven has come near”—and come near in him—

Jesus is saying that that he has the power and authority to make our lives | in this world—

This often hopeless, broken world we live in, and the often hopeless, broken parts of our own lives

Look more like what life in heaven is like—

The place where God’s rule faces no opposition.

The place where sin has no say.

The place where hope is the norm.

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From a hopeless place

To a hopeless people

Jesus presents a hopeful choice.

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Wonderful Counselor

That’s the good news.

And I know that it’s best practice to save the good news for last. But I’m not great at following advice.

Here’s the bad news:

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From a hopeless place

To a hopeless people

Jesus presents a hopeful choice.

But it requires something from us in our hopelessness that feels like it’s in short supply:

Faith.

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It’s hard to choose faith in the midst of hopelessness.

Because there’s just no reason to do it.

We have all the reasons in the world to just expect things to not change. To stay the same.

It’s not optimistic vs. pessimistic. It’s realistic vs. fantasy.

It’s “don’t get your hopes up, because you’ll be disappointed.”

(Pause.)

But right in the middle of our hopelessness, Jesus offers us a hopeful choice—

If we have faith.

Which means:

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If we take Jesus at his word,

And live according to his Word,

Jesus will become our Wonderful Counselor,

And we will find hope in our hopelessness.

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(Repeat.)

Let’s break that down: Wonderful Counselor.

First is wonderful. Full of wonder.

Some of us are just wired to wonder. We just can’t help but dream. We live in the clouds. We clearly and easily see beauty and possibility.

And if that’s you, I love you, and I’m so grateful for you, and also:

You annoy me.

Because that’s not me. I’m more of a problem solver. If I’m not solving problems, I’ll create problems to solve.

(I’m really fun to be around.)

But every once in awhile, I get these moments of wonder—like just a couple of weeks ago, when I was sitting in a deer stand up at our farm. Here’s what I was looking at:

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And I just was in awe of that beauty. Of what God has created. This place he’s put us. The depth of his goodness and artistry. What he’s capable of.

Jesus can do that for us; cause us to be in awe… full of wonder… at who our God is and what he can do in our lives. What’s possible with him.

(Pause.)

But you’ll only see that when…

You let this same Jesus be your counselor.

When you take Jesus’ counsel and make it your own.

When you live according to his Word,

His ways,

Doing what he tells you to do,

Living how he tells you to live—

Even when it seems like doing so won’t | change | a thing.

Closing Challenge

Let me ask you:

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Right now, what part of the Wonderful Counselor’s guidance is the most difficult for you to lean on and live out?

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Most of us are walking out of one family gathering and eyeing yet another here in just a few weeks. So, for you:

It might be love your enemies;

Forgive one another as I have forgiven you;

Do unto others as you would have them do unto you;

Love each other as I have loved you;

Love your neighbor as yourself:

All of this “wonderful counsel” that doesn’t often feel so wonderful when we go to live it out.

Or how about this one:

We spend a lot at this time of year. We spend a lot of our time. We spend a lot of our money. It’s really easy to put so many other things before the things Jesus tells us to give our time and our money to.

A Black Friday deal and a box on your porch can feel a lot more wonderful than a year-end gift that you can’t put your hands on.

Managing your portfolio can feel a lot more relevant than investing in the kingdom.

(Pause.)

What part of the Wonderful Counselor’s guidance is just tough for you to receive right now—much less trust—much less lean on and live out?

As we start this Advent season here at Prairie Lakes, we’ve got a way for you to test this out—an opportunity to see | what it’s like to make Jesus your Wonderful Counselor | in an area of your life | that we all have a tendency to kinda keep him at arm’s length.

Your weekend host… let’s pray…