Where Our Fears Live
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Posted:Feb 11, 2014 2:26 am
Last Updated:Feb 12, 2014 5:08 am 14218 Views
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Read: 1 Kings 17:17-24
Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You. —Psalm 56:3
Bible in a Year:
Leviticus 11-12; Matthew 26:1-25
Twelve years into our marriage, my wife and I were discouraged by the emotional roller-coaster of hopes raised and dashed in attempting to have . A friend tried to “explain” God’s thinking. “Maybe God knows you’d be a bad father,” he said. He knew that my mother had struggled with a terrible temper.
Then, Christmas 1988, we learned we were expecting our first ! But now I had this nagging fear of failure.
The following August, Kathryn joined our family. As nurses and doctors tended to my wife, Kathryn cried on the warming tray. I offered my hand to comfort her, and her tiny fingers wrapped around my finger. In that instant, the Holy Spirit swept through me, assuring me of what I had only recently doubted—that I would show love to this little one!
The widow of Zarephath also had doubts. Her had been struck with a lethal illness. In her despair she cried out, “Have you come to me to bring my sin to remembrance, and to kill my ?”
1 Kings 17.18. But God had other plans!
We serve a God who is mightier than the struggles we inherit and who is full of the desire to forgive, love, and heal the brokenness that rises up between us and Him. God is present in the places where our fears live.
Father, make Yourself known to us in our weakest
moments and in our greatest fears. Teach us to
receive Your love in a way that enables us to show
it to others, especially those closest to us.
Love swims against the current of life’s false fears.
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The Power Of Music
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Posted:Feb 10, 2014 5:28 am
Last Updated:May 18, 2024 9:34 am 14130 Views
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Read: Psalm 59:6-16
I will sing of Your power; yes, I will sing aloud of Your mercy in the morning; for You have been my defense and refuge in the day of my trouble. —Psalm 59:16
Bible in a Year:
Leviticus 8-10; Matthew 25:31-46
In Wales, the music of men’s chorus groups is deeply engrained in the culture. Prior to World War II, one Welsh glee club had a friendly yet competitive rivalry with a German glee club, but that bond was replaced with animosity during and after the war. The tension was gradually overcome, though, by the message on the trophy shared by the two choruses: “Speak with me, and you’re my friend. Sing with me, and you’re my brother.”
The power of music to heal and help is a gift from God that comforts many. Perhaps that is why the Psalms speak so deeply to us. There we find lyrics that connect with our hearts, allowing us to speak to God from the depth of our spirits. “But I will sing of Your power; yes, I will sing aloud of Your mercy in the morning; for You have been my defense and refuge in the day of my trouble” (Ps. 59:16). Amazingly, David wrote this song as he was being hunted down by men seeking to kill him! Despite his circumstances, David remembered God’s power and mercy, and singing of them encouraged him to go on.
May our God give us a song today that will remind us of His goodness and greatness, no matter what we may face.
This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long;
This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long.
“I will make music to the Lord, the God of Israel.” —Judges 5:3
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Unintentional
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Posted:Feb 8, 2014 1:23 am
Last Updated:Feb 8, 2014 10:55 am 14456 Views
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Read: Leviticus 4:1-3; Romans 3:21-26
If a person sins unintentionally . . . let him offer to the Lord . . . a young bull without blemish. —Leviticus 4:2-3
Bible in a Year:
Leviticus 4-5; Matthew 24:29-51
When I was returning our grandson Alex to his family after a visit, the traffic seemed especially challenging. Fast-maneuvering cars blocked me from the correct toll lane, forcing me to go through a lane where only cars with a prepaid pass are permitted, which I didn’t have. Alex told me that my license plate would be photographed and a ticket might be mailed to me. I was frustrated because a penalty would have to be paid even though my infraction was unintentional.
For the ancient Jews, a violation of God’s laws committed even in ignorance was taken very seriously. The Old Testament recognized and provided for unintentional sins through appropriate sacrifices: “If a person sins unintentionally against any of the commandments . . . let him offer to the Lord . . . a young bull without blemish as a sin offering” (Lev. 4:2-3).
Old Testament sacrifices were more than a reminder that accidental wrongs have consequences. They were given in anticipation that God in His grace would provide atonement even for wrongs we didn’t realize we were doing. He did this through the death of Jesus in our place. God’s grace is far greater than we could ever imagine!
Grace is getting what we do not deserve. Mercy is not receiving what we do deserve.
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Who's That Hero?
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Posted:Feb 7, 2014 5:37 am
Last Updated:Feb 8, 2014 1:23 am 14927 Views
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Read: Judges 3-11
Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. —Matthew 5:16
Bible in a Year:
Leviticus 1-3; Matthew 24:1-28
Reading the book of Judges, with its battles and mighty warriors, can sometimes feel like reading about comic book superheroes. We have Deborah, Barak, Gideon, and Samson. However, in the line of judges (or deliverers), we also find Othniel.
The account of his life is brief and straightforward (Judges 3-11). No drama. No display of prowess. But what we do see is what God did through Othniel: “The Lord raised up a deliverer” (v.9), “the Spirit of the Lord came upon him” (v.10), and “the Lord delivered Cushan-Rishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand” (v.10).
The Othniel account helps us focus on what is most important—the activity of God. Interesting stories and fascinating people can obscure that. We end up concentrating on those and fail to see what the Lord is doing.
When I was young, I wished I could be more talented so that I could point more people to Christ. But I was looking at the wrong thing. God often uses ordinary people for His extraordinary work. It is His light shining through our lives that glorifies God and draws others to Him (Matt. 5:16).
When others look at our life, it is more important that they see God—not us.
May the Word of God dwell richly
In my heart from hour to hour,
So that all may see I triumph
Only through His power.
Our limited ability highlights God
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Before And After
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Posted:Feb 6, 2014 5:00 am
Last Updated:Feb 7, 2014 5:38 am 15584 Views
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Read: Psalm 55:1-8,16-17
Give ear to my prayer, O God . . . . My heart is severely pained within me, and the terrors of death have fallen upon me. —Psalm 55:1,4
Bible in a Year:
Exodus 39-40; Matthew 23:23-39
What changes take place in a life of faith after severe testing? I thought of this as I read the tragic story of a Jamaican dad who accidentally shot and killed his 18-year-old while trying to protect his family from intruders.
News reports said he went to church (as was his habit) the next day—distraught but still seeking God’s help. Faith in God guided him before, and he knew God could sustain him after.
I thought about this in regard to my own life—having also lost a teenage . To review how I viewed life and faith before Melissa’s death, I dug into my computer archives to read the last article I had written before we lost her in June 2002. How would what I said then correspond to what I know now? Had severe testing changed my view of faith in God? In May of that year, I had written this: “David was not afraid to go boldly to God and tell Him what was on his heart. . . . We don’t have to be afraid to tell God what is on our heart.”
Before I went through tough times, I went to God and He listened to me. After, I discovered that He still listens and comforts and sustains. So I continue to pray in faith. Our faith remains intact and is strengthened because He is the God of the before and the after.
God is still on the throne,
He never forsaketh His own;
His promise is true, He will not forget you,
God is still on the throne.
What we know of God encourages us to trust Him in all we do not know.
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The Telltale Heart
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Posted:Feb 5, 2014 5:42 am
Last Updated:May 18, 2024 9:34 am 15828 Views
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Read: 1 John 3:16-24
If our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things. —1 John 3:20
Bible in a Year:
Exodus 36-38; Matthew 23:1-22
Recently I read about a private investigator in the US who would knock on a door, show his badge to whoever answered, and say, “I guess we don’t have to tell you why we’re here.” Many times, the person would look stunned and say, “How did you find out?” then go on to describe an undiscovered criminal act committed long ago. Writing in Smithsonian magazine, Ron Rosenbaum described the reaction as “an opening for the primal force of conscience, the telltale heart’s internal monologue.”
We all know things about ourselves that no one else knows—failures, faults, sins—that although confessed to God and forgiven by Him may come back to accuse us again and again. John, one of Jesus’ close followers, wrote about God’s love for us and the call to follow His commands, saying: “By this we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before Him. For if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things” (1 John 3:19-20).
Our confidence toward God grows out of His love and forgiveness in Christ, not our performance in life. “We know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us” (v.24).
God, who knows everything about us, is greater than our self-condemnation.
No condemnation now I dread,
I am my Lord’s and He is mine;
Alive in Him, my living Head,
And clothed in righteousness divine.
The one who receives Christ will never receive God’s condemnation.
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An Important Command
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Posted:Feb 4, 2014 8:35 am
Last Updated:Feb 5, 2014 5:42 am 14195 Views
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Read: Mark 12:28-34
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. —Mark 12:30
Bible in a Year:
Exodus 34-35; Matthew 22:23-46
When asked by a lawyer to identify the most important rule in life, Jesus replied, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength” (Mark 12:30). In those words, Jesus summed up what God most desires from us.
I wonder how I can possibly learn to love God with all my heart, soul, and mind. Neal Plantinga remarks on a subtle change in this commandment as recorded in the New Testament. Deuteronomy charges us to love God with all our heart, soul, and strength (6:5). Jesus added the word mind. Plantinga explains, “You shall love God with everything you have and everything you are. Everything.”
That helps us change our perspective. As we learn to love God with everything, we begin to see our difficulties as “our light and momentary troubles”—just as the apostle Paul described his grueling ordeals. He had in mind a “far more exceeding and eternal . . . glory”
(2 Cor. 4:17).
In the advanced school of prayer, where one loves God with the entire soul, doubts and struggles do not disappear, but their effect on us diminishes. “We love Him because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19), and our urgent questions recede as we learn to trust His ultimate goodness.
Once earthly joy I craved, sought peace and rest;
Now Thee alone I seek; give what is best.
This all my prayer shall be:
More love, O Christ, to Thee.
The most treasured gift we can give to God is one that He can never force us to give—our love.
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RESOLVE TO RESOLVE
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Posted:Feb 3, 2014 10:37 am
Last Updated:Feb 4, 2014 8:35 am 16503 Views
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Read: Romans 14:1-13
Resolve this, not to put a stumbling block or a cause to fall in our brother’s way. —Romans 14:13
Bible in a Year:
Exodus 31-33; Matthew 22:1-22
I haven’t made any New Year’s resolutions since 1975. I haven’t needed any new ones—I’m still working on old ones like these: write at least a short note in my journal every day; make a strong effort to read my Bible and pray each day; organize my time; try to keep my room clean (this was before I had a whole house to keep clean).
This year, however, I am adding a new resolution that I found in Paul’s letter to the Romans: “Let us not judge one another anymore, but rather resolve this, not to put a stumbling block or a cause to fall in our brother’s way” (14:13). Although this resolution is old (about 2,000 years), it is one that we should renew annually. Like believers in Rome centuries ago, believers today sometimes make up rules for others to follow and insist on adherence to certain behaviors and beliefs that the Bible says little or nothing about. These “stumbling blocks” make it difficult for followers of Jesus to continue in the way of faith that He came to show us—that salvation is by grace not works (Gal. 2:16). It requires only that we trust in His death and resurrection for forgiveness.
We can celebrate this good news of Christ in the coming year by resolving not to set up hurdles that cause people to stumble.
Thank You, Lord, that You sent the Holy Spirit
to do the work of convincing and convicting.
May I be content with my own assignment:
to do what leads to peace and edification.
Faith is the hand that receives God’s gift, then faith is the feet that walk with God.
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Buyer's Remorse
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Posted:Jan 31, 2014 3:14 am
Last Updated:Feb 3, 2014 10:37 am 23318 Views
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Read: Genesis 3:1-8
He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness.
—Isaiah 61:10
Bible in a Year:
Exodus 25-26; Matthew 20:17-34
Have you ever experienced buyer’s remorse? I have. Just prior to making a purchase, I feel the surge of excitement that comes with getting something new. After buying the item, however, a wave of remorse sometimes crashes over me. Did I really need this? Should I have spent the money?
In Genesis 3, we find the first record of a buyer’s remorse. The whole thing began with the crafty serpent and his sales pitch. He persuaded Eve to doubt God’s Word (v.1). He then capitalized on her uncertainty by casting doubt on God’s character (vv.4-5). He promised that her eyes would “be opened” and she would become “like God” (v.5).
So Eve ate. Adam ate. And sin entered the world. But the first man and woman got more than they bargained for. Their eyes were opened all right, but they didn’t become like God. In fact, their first act was to hide from God vv.7-8.
Sin has dire consequences. It always keeps us from God’s best. But God in His mercy and grace clothed Adam and Eve in garments made from animal skins (v.21)—foreshadowing what Jesus Christ would do for us by dying on the cross for our sins. His blood was shed so that we might be clothed with His righteousness—with no remorse!
Then will I set my heart to find
Inward adornings of the mind:
Knowledge and virtue, truth and grace,
These are the robes of richest dress.
The cross, which reveals the righteousness of God, provides that righteousness for mankind.
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Precious In God's Eyes
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Posted:Jan 30, 2014 5:44 am
Last Updated:Jan 31, 2014 4:09 pm 23539 Views
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Read: Psalm 116
Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints. —Psalm 116:15
Bible in a Year:
Exodus 23-24; Matthew 20:1-16
In response to the news that a mutual friend of ours had died, a wise brother who knew the Lord sent me these words, “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints” (Ps. 116:15). Our friend’s vibrant faith in Jesus Christ was the dominant characteristic of his life, and we knew he was home with God in heaven. His family had that assurance as well, but I had been focused only on their sorrow. And it’s appropriate to consider others during their grief and loss.
But the verse from Psalms turned my thoughts to how the Lord saw the passing of our friend. Something “precious” is something of great value. Yet, there is a larger meaning here. There is something in the death of a saint that transcends our grief over their absence.
“Precious (important and no light matter) in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints (His loving ones)” (The Amplified Bible). Another paraphrase says, “His loved ones are very precious to him and he does not lightly let them die” (The Living Bible). God is not flippant toward death. The marvel of His grace and power is that, as believers, our loss of life on earth also brings great gain.
Today we have only a glimpse. One day we’ll understand it in the fullness of His light.
So when my last breath
Shall rend the veil in twain
By death I shall escape from death
And life eternal gain.
Faith builds a bridge across the gulf of death.
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