Heavenly Father,

We turn our eyes to You today,
Who showers us with blessings,
giving us life and breath.
It is by Your grace that we celebrate Canada’s Dominion Day.
You bless us with many freedoms,
You protect us from many dangers,
and You cause the world to look upon our nation with favour.

You are good, O Lord,
and You have been good to us.
Help us to see,
help us to appreciate,
all of the goodness You have shown this land and its people.

We come to You today with joy
and with thankfulness,
but also with humble hearts.
We pray for the leaders of our nation,
from the halls of Parliament
and the chambers of the Supreme Court of Canada,
even to the throne of Queen Elizabeth II;
For every representative,
from every corner of this land,
regardless of political persuasion;
From the office of the Prime Minister in Ottawa,
to our own mayor, here in St. George.

For them we pray Wisdom
that they may have eyes to see the right path;
We pray Courage
that they would embrace and take that path;
When the path is difficult
we pray Patience and Strength to endure.
Let their hearts be humble
to serve Your people with Honour.

We pray for the valiant men and women
serving this land in the Canadian Forces.
Keep them safe
and give them success.
Bring them home to loved ones
and a hero’s welcome.

Father God,
as this flag rises to its place today,
let Canada rise in favour with You.
Shine Your love and grace upon us,
from the northern snows to the Great Lakes,
and from Vancouver to Grand Manan.
Continue to bless and protect us;
keep Canada glorious and free,
a lighthouse of Your greatness.

We pray these things in the precious name of Your Son, Jesus,

Amen.

The author’s point is along the lines of intentional discipleship. Intentional discipleship is choosing an individual or group, communing with them regularly, caring for them, cooperating with them, and commissioning them to continue the work. (It took me a minute to get all those “C’s”.) This describes how a mentor/discipler looks for a disciple.

But what if we are constantly living as disciples, looking up to mentors and disciplers who may not have any idea that we are absorbing their examples, teachings, models and ways of life into our own? Or maybe, what if they are hoping that we are?

I think every good leader knows that the breadth of his influence goes far beyond where he can see. In the age of Facebook, Twitter and blogs it has exploded far beyond the already immense network of radio and television, books and magazines. As an example, this simple blog has readers from as far as Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Nigeria, and the Ukraine. How many times do you think the reach of well-known leaders has circled the world?

The books that we read, the people we follow on Twitter, the conferences we attend, the audio recordings we download… All of these and more are intentional methods of receiving discipleship.

I wonder if we consider enough that as much as we are open to the intentional inroads we have built for our hearts and minds, there are many that have built because we have not chosen to destroy or block them. There is a danger of unintentional discipleship that we have left ourselves open to.

Jesus said:

“For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil.” (Matthew 12:34-35, ESV)

“But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person.” (Matthew 15:18-20, ESV)

The depths of our hearts are not only shaped by what we intentionally send to them, but are also developed by what we allow to enter them. Sometimes our defenses are low; other times are defenses are off. We have decided that as long as we are careful, we’re alright.

It isn’t quite so simple, though. Have you ever caught yourself lashing out and afterwards thought, “Where did that come from?” “That doesn’t sound like me.” “Looks like I’ve been hanging around so-and-so too much.” “I wonder why I reacted like that.”

What are the unintentional filters in your life? What is programming your mind and heart without your permission? What is programming you with your permission that you have no idea is actually influencing you? Think about the movies you’ve watched recently. Consider the magazines and articles you like to frequent. What music plays in your favorite coffee shop or department store? These are just a few examples of the unintentional disciplers of our hearts.

Set safeguards for your heart. As an example, I don’t listen to non-Christian music. Why? Is it because I think I’m more spiritual than the person who does? Not at all. I set boundaries on what I listen to because I believe in the power of the word and the emotional heart expressed through music. It is extremely powerful for me personally. As a safety net, I am mindful of what I allow my mind to learn and repeat. If anything, I recognize it as a potential stumbling block for me; so I must avoid it.

What about you? What are you guarding your heart and mind against? What is it open to? Take note of the disciplers in your life. Be intentional, yes. That will leave less time for the unintentional. But be prepared and ready for the unintentional to appear and to influence, because it will always be there.

mibṭâch

mibṭâch is used 15 times in the Old Testament and is actually translated as hope only once or twice, depending on the version you have. It is also translated as:

• confidence (9); trust (4); sure (1)

Examples

By awesome deeds you answer us with righteousness,
O God of our salvation,
the hope of all the ends of the earth
and of the farthest seas;
the one who by his strength established the mountains,
being girded with might;
who stills the roaring of the seas,
the roaring of their waves,
the tumult of the peoples,
so that those who dwell at the ends of the earth are in awe at your signs.
You make the going out of the morning and the evening to shout for joy.
(Psalm 65:5-8 ESV)

Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD,
And whose hope is the LORD.
(Jeremiah 17:7 NKJV)

Meaning

Based upon its root word, mibṭâch is better defined as refuge or security. Imagine your deepest, safest place.

We often speak of the place of refuge as the final stronghold, deep within a castle or fortification. If you’ve seen The Lord of the Rings films you’ve seen the place of refuge known as Helm’s Deep. When you approach it you first encounter a strong gate and a wall that is tall and strong, encircling it. If the wall is breached you move into the first fortified area with another wall, still guarded by a gate, harder to maneuver and fight within, except for those trained to do so, knowing their stronghold. Should the enemy again overtake you can run into a cavern carved in the rock of the mountain. It is impenetrable and inaccessible except by one strong, heavy door.

In our times of peace this refuge is a quiet place. We often forget about it, walking freely in the less fortified areas of our lives and hearts. But in the time of danger it becomes so dreadfully necessary that to forget or ignore it is to fall to our enemies.

This refuge, this deep, inner sanctuary must constantly be supplied with the necessities of life. Imagine if you were a king and needed to take refuge but found yourself with stale, diseased water and rotten, worm-filled food. How long would you be able to hold out against your enemy? But if you had fresh vegetables and fruit, salted meats and a spring for water, you would better be able to withstand a siege.

Hope is our stronghold, our refuge. Specifically, as shown by these Scriptures, it is our hope in God. We cannot forget about the refuge in the days of peace and prosperity. We must keep hope prepared for those days when our strength and safety fail us.

What About Your Hope?

It is true that we must have hope even in the good times. We need it present in our lives to build faith, and through faith build love. It is foundational to health as spiritual beings.

But it in our darkest days, hope must shine the brightest. Otherwise we forget, we fall away.

Where do you need your hope to grow?

• tôcheleth + śêber – Expectation
• yâchal – Patience, even when it is a painful waiting (longing)
• tiqvâh – Attachment, tying it to you so strongly so that it cannot be lost
• miqveh – Confidence, specifically in God over any other substitute
• kesel – Gut feeling, an undeniable conviction
• mibṭâch – Refuge, security