BANISH DISCOURAGEMENT

Psalms 77:2 “When I was in distress, I sought the Lord; at night I stretched out untiring hands and my soul refused to be comforted.”

Discouragement is the common cold of emotions. Eventually it affects us all. Elijah, God’s iron man of the Old Testament became so discouraged that he sat down under a juniper tree and prayed to die. According to Mark 8:12, even Jesus himself often “sighed” deep within his spirit. Paul had so many difficult experiences in Asia that according to 2 Corinthians 1:8 he, “despaired even of life.” The word, “despaired” means, “to be at an utter loss.” In other words, Paul’s situation seemed so hopeless that he saw no way out but death.

Many of the world’s and the church’s greatest leaders have been given to despair. Winston Churchill confessed that he was often, “hounded by the black dog of despair.” Charles Haddon Spurgeon, the greatest preacher since the Apostle Paul fought continually bouts of depression as a result of gout that finally killed him at age 58.

If you are singing the blues in your life it may help to know that the Psalmist understood and wrote about it in Psalm77. The man we meet in this Psalm bore all the marks that would today be diagnosed as depression. He was looking at life through dark colored glasses. He felt forgotten and forsaken by God. He couldn’t sleep. He couldn’t articulate his thoughts because of emotional exhaustion. He was tired all the time. He lived in the past longing for a day that had passed by. He remembered when he was happy and had a song in his heart, but no more, and he couldn’t seem to get back there no matter how hard he tried.

He became so depressed that he even began to question God (7-9). “Has God rejected his people?” “Does God no longer care?” “Has God lost his compassion?” These are sharp piercing questions, but they were the questions that came from the Psalmist as he wallowed in despair.

He hadn’t reached such a place over night. There is always progression in such emotional experiences. Despair begins with a disappointment that is not handled constructively. The pattern is this: disappointment leads to doubt; doubt leads to depression; and depression leads to despair. Simple disappointment is the father of despair.

Some of you may be like the psalmist and questioning whether God has left you without help in your time of trouble. But he made a startling insight that saved him from his despair. We see it in verse 10, “This is my infirmity,” he says. He recognized that the problem was with himself and not with God.

He saw that his doubts were due to his own weakness, not God’s negligence. It was at this point that he determined to do something about his problem. Four times in verses 10 and 11 he says, “I will ….”

That is significant. We are not helpless victims of our emotions. We do not have to be hijacked by our attitudes. We can take action. Our thoughts govern our moods; therefore if we think right we will feel right. Most depression arises from faulty thinking and we do have within our power to change or control our thoughts. To deal with these harmful emotions we must be mentally tough. If you don’t handle your emotions they will handle you. You must make up your mind that you are not going to allow your circumstances defeat you.

Many times God is at work in our lives when we can’t see his footprints, but he is nonetheless at work. He will never leave us nor forsake us.

INVISIBLE, BUT NOT ABSENT

Esther 2:15 “Esther won the favor of everyone who saw her.”

Esther is the story of how God used one woman to change the fate of an entire nation. As I read through the book, I discovered that the book of Esther is the only book out the 66 books of the bible where God is never named. In fact, a lot of people over the years didn’t think it should even be included as one of the books of the bible for that reason.

But I disagree. Because even if you can’t exactly find God’s name, you can find his fingerprints on every page. In the book of Esther, we find God working through the lives of 5 people to carry out his will. Even though he’s invisible… he isn’t absent. In fact, that’s really the theme of the entire book. “God’s invisible… but he isn’t absent.” And if you could just remember that, it would help you make it through life a lot easier. Even though we can’t see him, God’s working in our lives to carry out his will. Guiding us. Directing us. Leading us, most of the time without us even knowing it.

From my puny perspective, I can only see today and yesterday (even then I have trouble). But God can see tomorrow. Our hindsight is almost 20/20, so we’re great at history, but we stink at prophecy. I have no clue what’s going to happen in the next minute, let alone the next week. But God doesn’t have any problem seeing what’s coming. Augustine put it this way, “Trust the past to God’s mercy, the present to God’s love and the future to God’s providence”.

The word “providence” actually comes from 2 Latin words, "Pro" which means "before;" and "Video" which means "to see." So, providence means "to see before." In other words, God sees beforehand and plans accordingly. When we talk about the providence of God, we’re talking about God’s ability to see what’s going to happen, before it happens and adjust his plans to deal with it.

God’s never caught by surprise. He never says, “Whoa! I didn’t see that one coming!” While we have no idea what’s going to happen next, our invisible God is continually, constantly, confidently working behind the scenes to work his plans. We’re down here going crazy, screaming at God, and asking “What do you think you’re doing?” Why’d you allow that to happen? But he knows exactly what he’s doing. He blesses us and we praise him for his incredible timing, but when he tests us, we squirm and question his intelligence.

Like back-seat drivers, we’re crying out…“God! Watch out for that oncoming truck! Whoa! Here comes a stop sign. While he’s got his hand on the wheel, he’s perfectly calm weaving through traffic with the greatest of ease. In the midst of all the chaos of our lives, he knows what he’s doing. We’re tempted to take the steering wheel, but the minute we do, we crash.

God placed Esther in the right place at the right time to carry out his will and his plan for the salvation of his people. Mordecai knew that, and Esther learned it. The same holds true for us. God has us in the right place at the right time to serve him and bring about the fulfillment of his will. It’s not coincidental that you work where you do. It’s not fate that you live in the neighborhood you live in. Your life, your relationships, your job, your friends, your “everything” is not just dumb-luck. It’s providence.

THANKSGIVING

Psalms 100:4 “Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.”

What do you think of when you think of Thanksgiving? Eating, football, long weekend, shopping, history, or family? Thanksgiving is much more than any of this. True thanksgiving is not just a day for food, football, and family. It’s not just a holiday every fourth Thursday in November. For God’s people, everyday ought to be Thanksgiving Day.

Thanksgiving Day is a distinctive holiday. It doesn’t commemorate a battle or anyone’s birthday. It is simply a day set aside to express our thanks to God. Did you know that in 1789, George Washington made a public proclamation saying that, “it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor?” He recommended and assigned Thursday, the 26th day of November 1789 to be a day of Thanksgiving.

Of course most of know the story of the pilgrims and how they and the Indians of the area had a Thanksgiving feast in 1621 – long before Washington’s proclamation. Even earlier than 1621 – we find people offering up thanks to God. In the Old Testament we find a Song of Thanksgiving. It is Psalm 100. It is subtitled “A Psalm of Thanksgiving”. It is an invitation to join together to acknowledge the great things that God has done. Not only does Psalm 100 call us to praise the Lord with thankfulness – but it also describes to us the nature of thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving is what flows out of a thankful heart. In Luke chapter seventeen there is a very interesting story. Jesus enters a village and upon entering He finds ten men who were lepers. They stood a long way off and yelled out to Jesus, "Jesus, have mercy on us!" When Jesus saw them, He said to them, "Go, show yourselves to the priests." Did you know that they had not been cleansed yet? They left before they were cured – because the Bible says, “that as they went along, they were cleansed.” Do you know what happened then? One of them – only one of them – when he saw that he was healed, turned around and went back to see Jesus. The Bible says he fell down on his face at the feet of Jesus, glorified God and thanked Jesus for what He had done. Only one out of ten thanked Jesus. Do you remember what Jesus asked him? "Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine?

Thankfulness will come only from a grateful spirit. We should be challenged to consider all of God’s goodness. Upon true, deep consideration of all he has done for us, our hearts should be turned towards thanksgiving. Let us never take for granted who God is to us. Let us never forget just how much he loves us.

This Thanksgiving – with all the preparations, events and excitement – my prayer – is that God is thanked – with joy and gladness – with thankfulness and gratitude – and with a heart dependent on him.

A GOD WHO KNOWS NO LIMIT

Jeremiah 23:23 “Am I only a God nearby, declares the Lord, and not a God far away?”

God has no limits. That’s hard for us to even imagine, because most of our frustrations in life are a direct result of limitations. We’re limited by space because we can only be in one place at one time. We’re also limited in our knowledge. The old adage is true, "The more you learn, the more you know how much you don’t know". Living in an information based society like we do, we realize that we’ll never know even a fraction of what we could know. We encounter more information in one issue of The New York Times than a person in 18th century England encountered in his or her entire life. We’re constantly facing circumstances where we don’t know what to do, trying to answer questions we don’t know the answers to.

We also face limitations in our resources. As much as we like to pretend that we’re invincible, all of us have a breaking point; all of us reach the point of being physically exhausted, mentally spent, spiritually empty, and financially busted. We’re overwhelmed with the needs around us, whether it’s the transient at the gas station or a co-worker who can’t meet his rent, yet we look at our own resource and realize how limited they are. Because we’re so accustomed to these kinds of limitations it’s hard for us to conceive of a God who isn’t bothered by limitations.

As Christians we sometimes forget that God is already present. We tend to think of God’s presence is being like a NASA spy satellite. The satellite is roaming around the atmosphere, present one day, gone the next. You never know when it’s here and when it’s not. Sometimes our worship songs reflect a misunderstanding of God’s presence. When we ask God to "come" and "fill this place" we’re not asking God to be more present now then he was yesterday or last week. God is as present today as he ever has been and ever will be. When we sing these words we’re not asking God to be present, we’re asking God to make his presence known, to draw us into an awareness of his presence, to help us experience his presence as we worship.

We don’t have to beg and plead with God to show up, we don’t have to worry a Sunday might come when he doesn’t show up in our worship. Since God isn’t limited by space, we can draw near to him at any time, in any place. God is as present today in the local restaurant as he is in our worship service. God is as present today in the adult bookstores as he is on the seminary campus, as present in the bedroom as he is in the chapel, as present on the battlefield as he is at the peace negotiation table.

We can be absolutely confident of this reality, that God is always present with us wherever we are. We may not always feel his presence, we may even feel alone, but we can be confident that he’s here.

God is working to bring about his will, to fulfill his purposes, and he has all the resources he needs to accomplish his will. Because of this, we can anticipate God working in our lives, often in surprising ways. We can anticipate God bringing about amazing circumstances in our lives. We can expect to even see God intervene miraculously in our lives.

GOD IS IN CONTROL

Haggai 2:21-23 “"Tell Zerubbabel governor of Judah that I will shake the heavens and the earth. I will overturn royal thrones and shatter the power of the foreign kingdoms. I will overthrow chariots and their drivers; horses and their riders will fall, each by the sword of his brother. " 'On that day,' declares the Lord Almighty, 'I will take you, my servant Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel,' declares the Lord, 'and I will make you like my signet ring, for I have chosen you,' declares the Lord Almighty."

How much of your life do you control? You can eat right and exercise daily, but you don’t control the number of your days. You can live a healthy lifestyle and see your doctor regularly, but when an illness comes you can’t prevent it. How many people, who by the power of their own will kept cancer away or prevented some sickness? We cling to our jobs as though they provide us security, but anyone who has ever lost a job can tell you the loss of control that is felt in that moment. There is much of life you cannot and will not control, but you can be sure that God is in absolute control of everything, including your life.

Six times in our passage God tells us that he is in control. He says,

• “I will shake the heavens and the earth;”
• “I will overthrow the throne of kingdoms,”
• “I will destroy the strength of the kingdoms…”
• “I will overthrow the chariots and those that ride in them…”
• “I will take thee…”
• “I will make thee a signet…”

These are not foolish statements given by a braggart, but promises made by the Sovereign God of the universe. “I will,” without a doubt, you can take it to the bank, write it down and date it – I will do this and that. I am in control.”

Why did Zerubbabel need to hear that? Because when things got so bleak in the nation of Israel there may have been some cause for the faint of heart and weak of faith to doubt God’s control over their physical circumstances. God in essence says to these people, “You know it was bad yesterday, and you see it is bad today, and you have grown to believe that things are never going to get any better, but I want to remind you that I’m in charge around here!”

The people could not control whether or not it rained. They could not control how much their crops and vineyards and orchards produced. They could not control many things about their lives, but they could control the one thing that mattered most in all of that – they could control their responses.

Sometimes bad things happen because we invite them. Sometimes we simply live recklessly with our relationships, our possessions, with our time and talents and we bring them home with us. Other times bad things just happen. Regardless of why we go through trying circumstances that are beyond our ability to control, the one thing we do control is our response to God in the midst of those circumstances.

God is in control. That is the response I absolutely must give when things in my life are falling apart. Do you remember the old westerns where we’d see an enclosed buggy being pulled along by a team of horses? There would be passengers inside the buggy being led along by the driver on his seat perched atop the buggy. Imagine if the ride got pretty bumpy and the riders inside the buggy insisted that the driver hand them the reigns. Can you imagine the outcome if some one thought that he could effectively drive that coach from inside with such limited vision and sense of direction? Well isn’t that exactly what we are doing when we try to take the reigns from God? From where God sits he can see everything. He knows exactly where we’re headed and knows the way that is best for us – but too often when the ride gets bumpy we, with our limited vision and sense of direction, try to take over and drive ourselves.

No matter how down and discouraged you get; no matter how much you want to quit and give up; don’t ever forget that God is in control. When the people of Israel got down, they got way down. They had hit bottom, and they were right where God wanted them to be. The good news is that that’s not where God wanted them to stay. After considering their ways God wanted them to consider his ways. He is in control. He keeps his promises, and he is on our side.

GOD IS GOOD

Job 34:10 “So listen to me, you men of understanding. Far be it from God to do evil, from the Almighty to do wrong.”

How many of you say grace at meals? As children grow older, they want to have a little fun with the prayer itself. So you sometimes get prayers like this: "Good bread, good meat, good Lord, let’s eat." Or this: "Thank you, Lord, for this meal; we know you are the giver. But thank you, Lord, most of all, that we ain’t havin’ liver." Now, you will have to decide for your own household whether these prayers will be tolerated as expressions of youthful wit, or suppressed as sacrilegious. At our house, we take a firm stand. Those kinds of prayers are not allowed, unless they’re really funny.

When I was growing up, I learned this prayer: "God is great, God is good, and we thank him for this food: By his hand we all are fed, give us, Lord, our daily bread." Any of you use that? Short, simple, good theology. And when you’re done, the potatoes are still warm. Do you believe that God is good?

It’s easy to just reflexively answer, "Yes." We know that’s what we’re supposed to say. And of course, it’s easy to say "God is good" when things are going well. But when we’re suffering, when we’re going through a time of pain, or difficulty, or trial, then it becomes more of an open question, doesn’t it? Our response at those times to the question of whether God is good doesn’t come so quickly and automatically. We wonder, "If God is good, then why this?" Why this illness, why this painful relationship, why this financial problem, why this loss, why this disappointment? And so, even if we keep saying to ourselves and others that God is good, there’s a nagging voice in the back of our head that says, "Really?" "Is God really good?"

The Bible teaches that God is good. He is morally upright and pure. He is just and righteous. There is not the slightest hint of evil, or sin, or wrongdoing in his nature. He is absolutely perfect and holy. God always does what is right. Period. God will never treat us unfairly. He will never break his promises. He will never punish anyone unjustly. Now, sometimes we have a problem with this idea, because we have a very high opinion of what we deserve. We believe that we deserve good health. And so when the biopsy comes back positive we conclude that God is treating us unfairly. We have a "right" to financial security and prosperity. So when we get handed a pink slip, we think God has slipped up somehow. We deserve a trouble-free life. So when the storms of life blow through, we grumble against God and his oversight of our lives.

But the Bible says that God always does what is right. So if there’s a discrepancy between my expectations and the reality, then the problem isn’t with the quality of God’s justice. The problem is with my expectations, my inflated idea of what God owes me. God is good all the time.

God is good to us. I could quote literally dozens of verses to make the same point. Most of us could think of examples in our lives of how God has been good to us. God is good to his people. But if that’s true, then why do we doubt? Why do we wonder whether God is really good? Because we lack God’s perspective. We lack his wisdom and knowledge and understanding. Sometimes the work God is doing in our lives doesn’t seem good at all. It just seems painful and destructive. We look at what’s happening and say, "How could this possibly be anything but bad?" We don’t understand, and so we resist and rebel. But here’s the key: God loves us so much that he is willing to do what is necessary in our lives to bless us, even if we can’t understand or appreciate it. He is willing to do what is in our long-term interest; He is willing to seek our eternal good, even at the cost of short-term pain. God loves us enough not to stop when we complain or protest, but to continue working in our lives even when we resist and complain.

God doesn’t ask us to understand. He only asks us to believe that he is good, and to trust, and follow, and obey. He asks us to believe that the end result is worth the pain and struggle, to believe that he knows what he’s doing, to be willing to place our confidence in him rather than in ourselves or our own understanding. Will you do that today?

TRUSTING VS. TRYING

Galatians 3:14 “He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit."

In our scripture we come to the heart of the matter that Paul has been referring to up to this point in his letter to the Galatians: The conflict between two alternate roads to righteousness: trusting and trying. How does one please God? What makes a person truly a Christian-- trying to act in a way that seems pure and Godly or trusting in a Savior who paid the price for sin?

Paul Points out that there is a vast difference between these two roads to righteousness. So what’s the difference between trusting and trying and more importantly which is the right road? It’s a leading question that Paul is asking, because he knows that they received the Spirit when they believed the good news that Jesus died for their sins--he was there when it happened. These other teachers who claimed that they must follow the external requirements of the law--what to eat, what to wear, how to look--they came along later with their new prescription. Paul asks which prescription, faith or the law led to your receiving the Spirit and salvation? The law isn’t able to work salvation, nor to change human hearts, all that it is able to do is show the need for salvation.

The law is like a dentist’s little mirror, which he sticks into the patient’s mouth. With the mirror he can detect any cavities. But he doesn’t drill with it or use it to pull teeth. It can show him the decayed area or other abnormality, but it can’t provide the solution. So the prescription of the Law leaves us sick, but the prescription of faith leads to salvation.

A story is told about Fiorello LaGuardia, who was mayor of New York City during the worst days of the Great Depression and all of WWII. One bitterly cold night in January of 1935, the mayor turned up at a night court that served the poorest ward of the city. LaGuardia dismissed the judge for the evening and took over the bench himself. Within a few minutes, a tattered old woman was brought before him, charged with stealing a loaf of bread. She told LaGuardia that her daughter’s husband had deserted her, her daughter was sick, and her two grandchildren were starving. But the shopkeeper, from whom the bread was stolen, refused to drop the charges. "It’s a real bad neighborhood, your Honor," the man told the mayor. "She’s got to be punished to teach other people around here a lesson."

LaGuardia sighed. He turned to the woman and said "I’ve got to punish you. The law makes no exceptions—ten dollars or ten days in jail." But even as he pronounced sentence, the mayor was already reaching into his pocket. He extracted a bill and tossed it into his famous sombrero saying: "Here is the ten dollar fine which I now remit; and furthermore I am going to fine everyone in this courtroom fifty cents for living in a town where a person has to steal bread so that her grandchildren can eat. ’Mr. Baliff, collect the fines and give them to the defendant.’"

So the following day the New York City newspapers reported that $47.50 was turned over to a bewildered old lady who had stolen a loaf of bread to feed her starving grandchildren, fifty cents of that amount being contributed by the red-faced grocery store owner, while some seventy petty criminals and New York City policemen chipped in the rest.

Just like that lady we have each been caught red-handed, with nothing to say for ourselves. A just God knew that the penalty had to be paid, and he gave his most precious treasure, his beloved son, Jesus Christ to pay the penalty of our sin. But he didn’t just redeem us from the curse; he also showered us with blessing, giving us life more abundantly, life in the Spirit, which beats $47.50 any day.

MAY I HELP YOU?

Psalms 121:2 “My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.”

“May I help you?” That is a familiar greeting when we walk into a store. Anyone who has ever worked in a retail environment knows that question well. We need help most of the places we go. If we go out to eat someone may help us find a table. They take our order. Someone else even cooks the food. Do you remember the days when gas station attendants would fill ‘er up? There were times when grocery stores employed bag boys to carry your groceries out to the car.

When you think about it, we are all dependent on someone for something. We all need someone’s help. The problem occurs when others let us down. Even if something has a lifetime warranty, it is useless if the one who gave you the warranty goes out of business. People will fail us, but there is someone to whom we can turn for help that is reliable.

People and things will let us down. There will always be someone who doesn’t come through for us. I am a baseball fan. There are always some players that are called “clutch players.” They are the ones who make the perfect pitch or get the timely hit at a key spot in the game. When the game is on the line he is the one you want on the mound or in the batter’s box. Not everyone is perfect though. The best pitchers give up home runs. The best hitters strike out at key moments. Even the best “clutch player” fails from time to time. God never fails.

You see God created all the stuff we depend on. God created the Church. God created the family. God created the universe. I think it is a better idea to go to the source. Back at the turn of the 20th century there was an inventor who invented a new machine. He built several of these machines. One factory bought a machine. After a while they had a problem with it, and it quit working. Engineers from the company looked at it and tried to figure out what was wrong with it. No one could figure out what was wrong. Finally the owner of the factory called the inventor. He came out. He looked at it for a couple minutes, and then he got out a tool and tinkered on it for a couple minutes. He turned to the owner and said, “Well, your problem is solved.” The inventor handed the owner a bill for $100. Now remember this was over 100 years ago and $100 was a lot of money then. The owner exclaimed, “$100! You were only tinkered around for a few minutes.” The inventor replied, “$10 for tinkering and $90 for knowing where to tinker.”

When we need help it only stands to reason to go to the one who created the world to begin with. The inventor knew more about the machine than anyone because he built it. God knows more about what we need because he created us to begin with. God’s greatest desire is for us to have a relationship with him that is right. He wants us to depend on him. There is no other way than to trust him.

THE HOPE OF RESURRECTION

1 Corinthians 15:23 “When Christ comes again, those who belong to him will be raised to life."

Suppose you were walking past a farm one day and saw someone sitting in the field crying. There they sit, inconsolable at the head of a furrowed row. Concerned, you approach them and ask what’s wrong. They look up from beneath their John Deere tractor hat and extend a palm full of seeds in your direction. “My heart breaks for the seeds,” they weep. “Excuse me?” you might ask. Between sobs they explain, “The seeds will be placed in the ground and covered with dirt. They’ll decay, and we will never see them again.” As they weep, you are stunned. Finally, you explain to them a basic principle of farming: Out of the decay of the seed comes the birth of a plant. You kindly remind them: “Don’t mourn the burial of the seed. Don’t you know that you will soon witness a mighty miracle of God? Given time and tender care, this tiny kernel will break from its prison of soil and blossom into a plant far beyond its dreams.”

Any farmer who grieves over the burial of a seed needs a reminder—a time of planting is not a time of grief. Any person who anguishes over the burial of a body might need the same reminder. We may need the reminder that Paul gave the Christians in Corinth. The resurrection should be one of the most anticipated events of Christ’s coming and it’s an essential element of the Christian faith. When Jesus returns the first major event will be the resurrection of the dead. In fact, the Bible says, “the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the Christians who have died will rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever” (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 NLT).

Just as with our Lord, our bodies, which are now perishable, dishonored, weak, and natural, will be raised into bodies that are imperishable, glorious, powerful, and spiritual. The coming resurrection is the hope and motivation of the church and of all believers. Whatever happens to our present bodies—whether they are healthy or unhealthy, beautiful or plain, short-lived or long-lived, or whether they are indulged or tortured—they are but a seed that is placed in the ground and one day our blessed hope and assurance is that these created natural bodies will be transformed into wonderful, eternal spiritual bodies. Although we have only a glimpse of what those new bodies will be like, it should be enough to know that “we shall be like him.”

Unless Christ comes first, your body will be buried. Like a seed is placed in the ground, so your body will be placed in a tomb. And for a season, your soul will be in heaven while your body is in the grave. But the seed buried in the earth will blossom in heaven. Your soul and body will reunite, and you will be like Jesus.

FIXING OUR FOCUS

Psalms 73: 1-2 “Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart. But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold.”

A little boy was sitting on a street corner trying to sell his little puppy. A salesman passed the corner each day, and after a week he began to pity the boy who was striving to sell his puppy. The salesman knew the boy didn’t “think big”. He stopped and said, "Son, do you really want to sell this dog?" The boy replied, "I certainly do." "Well you’re never going to sell him until you learn to “think big”. What I mean is, take this dog home, clean him up, doll him up, raise your price, make people think they’re getting something big, and you’ll sell him."

That noon the salesman came by and there was the boy with a puppy that was groomed, perfumed, and beribboned alongside a big sign: TREEMENNDOUS Puppy For Sale--$5,000. The salesman gulped and realized he had forgotten to tell the boy about keeping it simple as well. That evening he stopped by to tell the boy the other half of the formula, only to discover that the boy was gone, the puppy was gone and the sign lay there with "SOLD" written across it in big letters.

The salesman couldn’t believe it. This kid couldn’t have sold the dog for $5,000. His curiosity got the best of him and he rang the boy’s doorbell. The boy came to the door and the salesman blurted, "Son you didn’t really sell that dog for $5,000 now, did you?" The boy replied, "Yes, sir, I did and I want to thank you for all your help." The salesman said, "How in the world did you do it?" The boy replied, "Oh, it was easy. I just took two $2,500 cats in exchange!"

We can sometimes be the creators of our own problems in life. You see, the problem comes when we do not focus on the right things. That boy was looking to sell his puppy, but he was approaching it from the wrong perspective. As soon as he made the dog more attractive, that helped him “sell” the puppy. Think of it this way. If you go shopping for a car, and you see an old, beat-up Yugo with 300,000 miles on it, would you take that car? Of course not. We tend to look at things that way—what we can see, feel, touch, smell, taste. Those are what we give the most importance in our decision making.

So why does it surprise us when our vision constantly trips us up? We tend to take a look around and focus on the wrong things, and as we do so, that tends to bring us down. We start to develop our own little pity party—why aren’t things going my why? Why does so and so get everything they want? Why do bad, sinful people get to do so much, and here I am stuck with nothing? Why do I never get the breaks in life? Why is it that bad things always come into my life? The problem is that we often look at things with earthly eyes, rather than heavenly eyes. We tend to look at things through our own glasses, than with glasses equipped with faith.

We tend to look at our lives, our hardships as evidence that things are going wrong. But sometimes, when things go wrong, it’s because we are doing things right. Consider Job. He was living rightly when everything went wrong—it was his proper perspective that allowed him to not sin against God.

We need to do the same—we need to walk by faith, not by sight. And when the things of this world start to get us down, we need to remember to see things as God sees them. We need to worship him—draw near to him. We need to recognize our sin. And we need to see our security in God.

CHOOSE TO OBEY

Deuteronomy 11:17 “the blessing if you obey the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today”

Do you have any idea how many choices you make every day? You have to decide to get out of bed, what you will wear, what to eat for breakfast, and on and on the simple choices go. Our lives are filled with an endless run of choices. There are everyday choices like the ones listed. Then there are big-time choices like deciding on your education and career, who you will marry, and where you will live. Then there are the ‘once in a lifetime’ choices that make all the others pale in comparison. In Deuteronomy, God gives us a once in a lifetime kind of choice. “Behold I set before you this day a blessing and a curse...” Or as Moses later puts it “I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your descendants may live...”

As far as I know everyone wants the good life, they want to be blessed. We want health, happiness, peace, prosperity. We’ve even made these our constitutional rights. There aren’t too many folks who would say “gee, I think being miserable would be so much better.” So why are there so many miserable situations out there? The world promises us so much of the good life. I am reminded of an old credit card commercial that said, “There are things in this world money can’t buy, of course for everything else there’s MasterCard.” (At least until you file for bankruptcy). God warns us about following the way that leads to a calamity, but that is not the most important point. So many people can get caught in the trap of wanting the “good life”, believing that is all the blessing they will ever need. This often demonstrates a failure to understand what life is all about.

God offers us real blessing - real life. So how do we get “the good stuff” - the real blessing that doesn’t turn to ashes? It is really rather simple and very, very difficult at the same time. We must obey God. “The blessing shall be yours, if you keep the commandments of the Lord your God” There is a direct correlation between doing things God’s way and receiving God’s promises.

God has instituted certain principles for our lives. These principles are found within scripture. They are a road map to the best life. They lead us into a path of fulfillment. They direct us into a realm of blessing. There is no other way to find the realization of his promises except we live in obedience to him. You may find another way to riches. You may find another way to promotion. But don’t be deceived, accomplishments attained outside of obedience are natural and will pass away. God desires that each of us find life and blessings that are eternal.

The great thing about God’s love is that these promises of life are available to everyone. It doesn’t matter who you are or where you come from – if you obey God, you are choosing life. It is a simple choice that leads to a grand conclusion.

PREPARE THE WAY

Matthew 3:10 “The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.”

An old farmer had plowed around a large rock in one of his fields for years. He had broken several plowshares and a cultivator on it and had grown rather morbid about the rock. After breaking another plowshare one day, and remembering all the trouble the rock had caused him through the years, he finally decided to do something about it. When he put the crowbar under the rock, he was surprised to discover that it was only about six inches thick and that he could break it up easily with a sledgehammer. As he was carting the pieces away he had to smile, remembering all the trouble that the rock had caused him over the years and how easy it would have been to get rid of it sooner.

Creating something new often requires that we first remove any obstacles to that new creation. For instance, putting up a new building first requires that we prepare the land. Many rocks, bushes and trees, at times, have to be removed. At times, wet lands have to be filled in with soil so that a new building will be able to have a stronger foundation. If you don’t get rid of the obstacles, you simply cannot build. Try putting a foundation on a piece of land filled with stumps, bush, water and rocks and see what will happen. It just can’t be done.

When we enter into a new relationship with a person, one of the tasks we have to engage in is removing obstacles to that relationship. Some people know each other at work or at church for years, but they never get close because there are obstacles to furthering such a relationship. Perhaps, some surface things like appearance or language, or an apparent difference of opinion or lifestyle, keep people apart. Only when those obstacles get swept aside do two people have any chance of really becoming friends.

If we have purchased a piece of land and want to build our home there, we carefully look at the land and ask ourselves: What do I need to do in order to prepare this land for my home? As we reflect on our lives we could ask: What are the major obstacles that hinder us from really developing a strong with relationship with Christ?

Are we allowing a certain sin to constantly drag us down, robbing us of our peace and injecting sadness into everything we do? Perhaps it is something that happened in the past, something that we consider to be such a heavy burden that we don’t know how we have carried it so long and so far. We can still relive the past in our imaginations, still blaming ourselves, still wishing it had never happened. If such is the case, we need to focus on Christ and not on ourselves. Jesus wants to free us from these past burdens. He died to bring us freedom. God is a God of mercy, forgiveness and freedom. Allow the Lord to carry those things which are too heavy for you. Take them to him in prayer.

The first, middle and last step to clearing the ground for a right relationship to Jesus is prayer. Through sincere and persevering prayer Jesus will most certainly lead us back to himself. Any obstacle standing in the way of a healthy relationship with Jesus is an obstacle to our true peace and happiness. Allow the Lord to remove all obstacles in your life.

HAPPILY EVER AFTER

Revelation 21:4 “He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."

One of my earliest movie memories was the 1978 version of Superman. The storyline and special effects aren’t as impressive now as they were then, but I was just a child. I remember one scene in particular. Lois Lane was driving through the desert when her car is swallowed by an earthquake and Superman can’t get there in time to save her. Superman gets super angry and he starts flying around the earth at supersonic speed and he reverses time by reversing the rotation of the earth thus saving Lois.

Don’t you wish you could do that? I know that isn’t based on very good science. For one thing, the earth rotates around its axis at about 1,000 mph so if Superman had done what he did he would have saved Lois but the entire planet would have died from whiplash. But it’s a cool concept.

Wouldn’t it be great if you were having a conversation with someone and you said something you wish you hadn’t said and you could simply excuse yourself from the conversation, fly around the earth a few times, and pick up before you left off? Of course, the real danger then would be mid-air collisions because we’d all be flying around the earth all the time. I wish I could reverse time but the arrow of time points in one direction. You can’t undo what you’ve done. In other words, some things in life are irreversible.

When I was a freshman in high school, I blew out my elbow in the last game of our baseball season. I went to the doctor for a diagnosis and he said I tore my radial collateral ligament. I asked him how long it’d take to heal. He said, “Never.” I’ll never forget the feeling of finality—the damage was done and there was nothing I could do to change it. I learned a lesson the hard way that day: some things in life are irreversible. You can’t untear a ligament. For what it’s worth, I’ve also learned from personal experience that you can’t undelete documents, unbake cookies, uncut hair or unrun red lights with surveillance cameras. Some things in life are irreversible. But here’s some good news: God is in the business of reversing the irreversible.

If you read the gospels you’ll discover that Jesus reversed weather patterns. He reversed blindness. He reversed paralysis. And 2,000 years ago, He reversed death. I love the way Acts 2:24 says it. “But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him.” I love that language. We tend to think of dying and coming back to life as being impossible. Peter says the exact opposite. It was impossible for death to keep its grip on Christ.

Our scripture paints a picture of how I believe God wanted things to be from the beginning. God, living in holy communion with creation, free from hurt, pain, disappointment, sickness, loss, etc. Life may be difficult at times. We all have felt the effects of a problematic world. But one day, God will reverse the ill impacts of our fleshly existence. In the end, he will bring his people to a glorious place, safe with him. Now that’s a happy ending.

LOVE GOD WITH EVERYTHING

Mark 12:30 “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.”

I remember a Peanuts cartoon in which Charlie Brown was talking to Lucy. He remarked about the tragedy of so much apathy in the world today. And Lucy responded, "Yeah, it’s terrible. But who cares?"

To love the Lord with all your heart means to love him with pure devotion. It’s not enough to give Christ a place in our hearts. We are called to love him with all of our heart. When you love someone with all of your heart, you think about them almost all of the time. You long to be with them. They’re the priority in your life. And to love God with all your heart is the same. It means that your heart is devoted to him. It means that you are faithful to him. He becomes the most important thing in your life. But the love we are to have for God has another characteristic. You are not only to love God with all your heart; you are to love him with all your soul. To love God with all our soul means that our love for God ought to be full of passion. And we are all people of passion. Some people are passionate about sports, some people are passionate about their work, some people are passionate about hobbies, like art, or music. People are passionate about all sorts of things, but how many of us have the same passion for God that we have for these other things?

We cannot afford to be apathetic about our love for God. We must be excited about our relationship with Jesus. We must be passionate. In the Song of Solomon, we hear about the passionate kind of love we ought to have for God. Song of Solomon is a pretty racy book, if you think about it. But it’s describing a passionate, all consuming love. And about giving everything you’ve got to the one you love. And it’s a perfect example of how our love for the Lord should be. Real love is passionate love. To love God with all our soul means that we must be involved with all our emotions in our relationship to him. When you’ve really given Jesus all of your heart, then it’s easy to become excited about following him.

Our love for Christ begins with a pure devotion and expresses itself by being full of passion, but there is another element. Jesus says that you are to love the Lord your God with your entire mind. This is a love that is thoroughly considered. Today it seems that some Christians are so open minded that their brains are falling out. Emotionalism is a big problem in the body of Christ today. In Romans chapter one the apostle Paul said, “For I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation.” The Gospel of Jesus Christ is the power of God unto salvation. Loving God is not an emotional expression that bypasses the mind. It is true that when people rely on their own intellectual capacity to figure out God, they always come up short. Because God is too big to be totally figured out by human minds. But we can learn and know what God has revealed to us. It is clear from the Scripture that God fully intends for our minds to be involved in our love for him.

Do you have a passion for God? Is that fire burning within you today? Make the conscious choice to ignite and maintain your passion.

WHERE IS GOD WHEN I'M HURTING?

Job 23:10 “But He knows the way that I take. When He has tried me, I shall come forth as refined gold.”

One of the biggest speed bumps to understanding God can be our encounters with pain and suffering. The hurts we experience may stem from abandonment or abuse, sorrow and loss, fears and failures, setbacks and confrontations, chronic illness and pain - the list is long. We all hurt for a variety of reasons.

Sometimes God’s hand of comfort and his compassion toward us in our pain and sorrow is so wonderful we can’t describe it. He appears on the scene of our calamity with assistance and provision and we stand in awe of his presence. At other times, however, he seems distant and disinterested, like he’s moved and hasn’t left a forwarding address. He has all the power and provision necessary to alleviate our misery but he doesn’t seem to be lifting a finger to come to our rescue. It’s at times like that when our faith is tested. Our cries for help seem to go unanswered; our thirst for answers unquenched. If we’re not careful we can become fearful and disillusioned with God when we’re hurting.

The classic biblical example of searching for God when you’re hurting is the story of Job. Job quickly lost his possessions, his health and his children in a succession of natural disasters. And even though he knew God, he made an honest admission in his pain. Have you ever had an experience like Job’s? Have you had those times when you searched for God and you couldn’t find him? You knew he was at work but you had no immediate indication that he was doing anything to come to your rescue in the midst of your pain? Where is God when I’m hurting?

HE’S PROMPTING POSITIVE CHANGES IN ME

What tests have you been experiencing lately? Do you think nothing good can come of them? If so, think again. Testing has the potential to burn out our impurities. Difficulties are part of God’s refining process. Our pain is often the fire that makes us better. And as we become a better person, we experience more of the joy and fulfillment in life that God created us to experience. We become more like God. Difficulties in our life have tremendous power to change us – for better or for worse. We get stronger or weaker – more positive or more negative. We become more hopeful or more cynical – depending on our response to our pain.

Sometimes our biggest problem is waiting. We don’t want to wait. We want to wrestle. We’re like Jacob in the Old Testament. We want to wrestle with God and we want to wrestle with our problems. But that’s not always what God wants. God wants us to approach our problems with faith in him. He wants us to exercise confidence in his timing. God doesn’t always take away our problems because, quite frankly, his goal isn’t for us to live a problem-free life. His design is for us to become more like his son Jesus.

GOD IS SHOWING ME THAT HE LOVES ME

The initial reaction to that statement is, “If God wants to show me how much he loves me why doesn’t he just stop the pain?” Sometimes, our hurts are not always because we have done wrong, but sometimes God doesn’t stop the hurting in our life because the pain is meant to keep us from straying off into even more hurtful and harmful territory. He loves us enough to protect us by confronting us with pain to make us think about how we’re living, how we’re thinking or acting. He loves us enough to use our pain as a boundary that keeps us from hurting ourselves even more.

If God were as weak-willed as we are he wouldn’t be as consistent in his discipline. But he’s not a doting father who gives his children everything they want when they want it because he knows that’s not always best for us. We want the pain to stop and God wants the pain to stop. He doesn’t enjoy disciplining us any more than we enjoy being disciplined. But he wants to burn the impurities out of our life.

Sometimes you’re going to have pain. Sometimes you’re going to hurt. Where is God when this happens? He’s right there with us because he loves us.

RESTORATION

Joel 2:25 “And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpillar, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you.”

Joel was a prophet to the southern kingdom of Judah between 835-796 B.C. about the same time Elisha was prophesying to the Northern Kingdom, Israel in 848 BC. Joel speaks to people who had become very complacent and self centered. They took God for granted and worshiped idols. They had become insensitive to the condition of their spiritual lives. Joel warned them that sooner or later their sinful lifestyle would bring down the judgment of God, yet their physical and moral senses were dulled to the point that they seemed oblivious to their need. Why did they need God? Up to this time they had been experiencing a great abundance agriculturally--they had plenty of grain, corn and wine and oil. They didn’t want for a thing. Occasionally they would go to the temple to offer the sacrifices that were required and go through the outward religious motions. But it didn’t really mean much to them. As they continued on this downward spiral, a crisis occurred that stopped them right in their tracks. A terrible plague of locust swarmed into the land and nothing was left in the fields--once overflowing, they are now empty of crops. It affected the animals as well as the agriculture of the area. The magnitude of the destruction was so devastating that it would take a long time to recover from it.

Joel comes on the scene at this time to speak not only a message of judgment to these wayward people, but also a message of hope. I wonder how these people felt as they looked around at the devastation in their lives. Maybe they felt hopeless that they could do nothing to change the way things were. Maybe they felt depressed. Maybe they felt like giving up completely. Some may have felt like working very hard to do something to change things.

How do you feel when things hit your life like a destructive swarm of locust? Scripture points out here that what the swarming locusts didn’t ruin the other types did. In the King James Version the four types mentioned are: the locust, the cankerworm, the palmerworm, and the caterpillar. These represent destruction of different types--stripping, cutting, swarming, and hopping. It is like when things hit us we might say, “well when one problem gets taken care of I was hit from a different direction.” What each of the locust groups had left behind, the others had eaten. Problems came in from all directions and just devoured everything.

There are seasons in our life that involve famine and devastation and then there are times of restoration. The seasons of famine have a divine purpose in our lives and they accomplish things that only these hard places can accomplish. Sometimes God can’t get our attention when everything is going along fine. Sometimes we wonder where the bad things come from. What is their source? Is it God’s judgment? Is it just natural circumstances? Does it come from our own bad choices? Or does it happen just because we are in the wrong place at the wrong time? We can probably answer, “All of the above.”

Hope is found in the fact that no matter how devastating things seem, God desires to restore us. Restoration can come to us even when it looks impossible--even after devastation of long standing. God says, “I will restore to you the years...” Sometimes when devastation comes it seems to eat away years of blessing. There are times when it is the result of personal sin or of fortuitous circumstances.

Restoration has some prerequisites that can’t be overlooked. There has to be a genuine turning to God and repentance. Not just an outward ritual. He will give you a new spiritual perception to recognize what God is really doing for you. God wants each of us to know that there is a time when he will restore in order to demonstrate his hand in our lives. If God has taken you through some lean times, know that he is the restorer of what the locusts have eaten and acknowledge him and praise him for doing it for you too.

SAME SOLUTION TO AN AGE OLD PROBLEM

Leviticus 1:3 “…that he may be accepted before the Lord.”

The word sin is used 90 times in the book of Leviticus, more than any other book in the Bible, and it is used over 4 times as much in Leviticus than in Genesis and Exodus combined. In Exodus, we find God being concerned with getting his people out of Egypt. God was concerned with releasing them from the bonds of Egyptian slavery. In the book of Leviticus, which covers a one month period of time after the building of the tabernacle, we find God now concerned with getting Egypt out of his people. God was concerned with dealing with the people’s problem of sin. Ever since Adam and Eve started the process in the garden, mankind has continually throughout the years, sought to do things their own way, and they have openly rebelled against and rejected God’s way. Sin is disobedience to God’s laws and commands. And as Paul says in Romans, we sin when we fall short and when we don’t measure up to what God expects us to be and what God expects us to do.

Sin is disobeying God and breaking his laws. Sin separates us from God. God is Holy. Four times in the book of Leviticus God tells his people to be holy because he is holy. As God speaks to Moses from the tabernacle, he not only pointed out to Moses mans problem of sin. God also, told Moses of the provision that he was instituting to deal with the sins of God’s people.

You see man’s problem of sin must be dealt with, before man can be restored to fellowship with a holy God. And God seeing man’s need and knowing that man was in no position to do anything about his sin, called from the tabernacle to Moses. He spoke to Moses informing him of his provision for man’s need. That provision was through offerings and sacrifice. The words offering and sacrifice are used over 90 times in this book and the first 7 chapters deal with the 7 sacrifices that God established. As you reflect on the Mosaic Sacrificial system you will see many common threads and applications to our own worship of God today.

Does mankind and God’s people still struggle with the problem of sin? They most certainly do. The majority of the world is still lost in sin. And Christians struggle with sin as well. The apostle John in his first letter to the church writes that if any Christian says he is without sin he is a liar. God still makes provision for our sin by sacrifice. When were sinners God demonstrated his love for us in this way - he gave his one and only son to die on a cross for us, while we were still his enemies. Jesus bore the burden of our sin upon his beaten back. Jesus carried the penalty of our sin away from us. Our sin has been removed as far as the east is from the west. God provided the ultimate sacrifice for sin himself in Christ.

SLOW TO ANGER

Nahum 1:3 “The Lord is slow to anger and great in power; the Lord will not leave the guilty unpunished.”

In today’s world it seems like good guys finish last…or at least that’s what people want us to think. Winning from God’s point-of-view is different. In the end you may not wind up with a million dollars, but you have God’s approval. True happiness in life comes from living right, with a clear conscience. When we trust in the Lord, we experience victory and we survive not only this world, but we have a guarantee for the world to come.

The prophet Nahum delivered a sober message of judgment to Nineveh, but in the middle of his harsh prophecy he offers hope. God knows us and wants to protect us. Nahum’s name means “comfort” or “consolation”. But for those who reject God, the prophet cries, “Where can I find anyone to comfort you?” (3:7). Nahum presents God as our refuge, a shelter in the time of storm.

Protection doesn’t mean a carefree life. When trials come we trust in God and seek his refuge. Faith requires trust without full knowledge; it means living with uncertainty. God chooses our circumstances and trials; we choose our attitudes and reactions to them. I’m reminded of an affirmation found written on a cellar wall in Germany where Jews hid from the Nazis: “I believe in the sun even when it is not shining. I believe in love even when I am feeling it not. I believe in God even when He is silent.”

Nahum wrote 150 years after the time of Jonah. Under Jonah’s reluctant preaching the Ninevites repented and God withheld his wrath. But their repentance wore off and they sank deeply into all kinds of sin. Nineveh was again a place of unparalleled wickedness. It was also the wealthiest city in the world, furnished with priceless objects taken as plunder from conquered nations.

God makes it plain that he is angry with Nineveh. We don’t like to think of God as being angry, yet the Bible is clear that he hates sin. You’ve likely heard about billboards along the highway with messages from God. One says, “Don’t make me come down there.” There’s an old children’s hymn that begins, “Gentle Jesus, meek and mild.” This is perfectly true about our Lord, but it is not all the truth. Jesus wept over the city of Jerusalem and prophesied that this city which rejected him would be destroyed. The Hebrew word used by Nahum for anger literally means “heavy or hot breathing”. When considering the wrath of God, there are two words we tend to confuse. One is retaliation; the other retribution. To retaliate is to seek revenge and get even. God does not retaliate. Martin Luther (in his typical manner) said, “If I was God and the world had treated me as it did Christ, I would kick the wretched thing to pieces.” In His justice, God brings retribution. Paul makes this clear in Romans when he says “The payment for sin is death” (6:23). He has the power to deliver or destroy. He offers us the option to decide which one it will be.

Yet even when God is angry at sin, he is patient with us. He holds back his vengeance. He waits for us to repent. He doesn’t slam dunk us the moment we step out of line. He is “slow to anger.” He has control over his wrath. He gives us many chances to repent. When we place our trust in Christ, God in his grace gives us what we don’t deserve—eternal life. God in his mercy does not give us what we do deserve.

A FUTURE HOPE

Lamentations 1:7 “In the days of her affliction and wandering Jerusalem remembers all the treasures that were hers in days of old.”

Have you ever had one of those days where you wanted so badly for it to just be over? Because you knew that tomorrow had to be better. Because there’s just no way that any two days could ever be this bad.

It’s been said that mankind tends to live on one of three levels. The first level is survival. For some, this survival is literal. They are poor and destitute, and they must spend every waking moment trying to make it through another day. For others, survival means making it to another weekend. Their struggle is simply to exist. But it’s really not much of an existence. The second level is success. Some people live to make it big. To get a big salary, a big car, and a big house. But nothing they get ever brings the satisfaction that they thought it would and there’s always something bigger and better just out of reach. The third level of living goes beyond survival and beyond success. And that is the level of significance. Living a life of significance depends on finding and following God’s purpose for your life - your divine destiny.

The people who have the highest impact are not the most educated, or the wealthiest, or even the most powerful. The people that make the biggest difference and find the most fulfillment in life are those with the clearest sense of God’s purpose for their lives. God has a plan for each and every one of our lives. We must grasp the fact that we’re all called to fit into the kingdom of God in different capacities and facilitate the working of the will of God in the earth.

But it’s easy to lose sight of this in the daily grind. The devil tries to divert us, the world tries to distract us, and our own flesh just wants immediate gratification. None of which are conducive to being who God wants you to be. If we are to live at that desired level of significance we must:

LET GO OF THE PAST

Have you ever met someone that’s stuck in their past? Whether it’s good or bad, they just can’t seem to get over it? Maybe it was some tragedy - “I just can’t forgive myself.” “I know my parents divorce was my fault.” Maybe it is some past glory - “I was the Homecoming Queen.” But how many know that if you’re going to live a happy, quasi-normal life, you’re going to have to let go of your past. Especially as a Christian. And I’m not talking about forgetting where you came from but about putting your past in proper perspective. You can’t dwell there and you can’t go back. Relish the fond memories, learn from past mistakes, and allow God to heal past hurts. Let it go. Because until you’re willing to let go of your past you’ll never be able to move on into what God has for your life.

DON’T JUST LIVE FOR THE MOMENT

We can get so stuck in the here and now, living for the moment, with no thought of the future. No thought that there are consequences to their actions. No thought of how their decisions are going to pan out down the road and how those decisions will affect their life and the lives of those around them. This is a self-centered age.

It’s a whole different ballgame when your hearts into it and you see things from a proper perspective, isn’t it. That’s what God is looking for from us. To live for him today while living for the future hope that he has promised.

LIVE WITH HOPE FOR TOMORROW

Hebrews 11:13-14 says “These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country.”

In this case, the end really does justify the means. You can’t let anything stand in your way. You must do anything necessary to get to where you need to be. You must cut off any relation that hinders your destiny. Break any ungodly habit. Deny any unwholesome affection. Relinquish anything that captivates your dedication.

Does this mean that we have to pine away our days as spiritual robots? Not at all. It’s all about priorities. God must be first and foremost in your life. And his destiny for you must take priority. The sobering truth is that every area you refuse to surrender to the will of God, you allow to dictate your destiny.

What is it that captivates your heart? Be it God or earthly treasure… fame or fortune… material or spiritual… temporal or eternal… know this… it dictates your destiny.

THE WAY UP IS DOWN

Revelation 5:6 “Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing in the center of the throne.”

Here are some of my favorite oxymorons: artificial grass, boneless ribs, big town, harmless lie, communist party, green oranges, easy labor, fresh frozen, jumbo shrimp, cafeteria food, military intelligence, one choice, random order, slumber party, freezer burn, small fortune, government organization, living dead, same difference, plastic glasses, peace force, pretty ugly, head butt, working vacation, Dodge Ram, work party, healthy tan, good grief, and devout atheist.

Chapter 5 of the book of Revelation gives us another oxymoron. Something that sounds impossible, but yet it is still true. We see a lion that is a lamb. Two very opposite things, but yet in Christ they are the same. The first part of Revelation 5 is a picture of heaven. God is sitting on a throne, and in his hand is a scroll. Not just any scroll. It was double-sided, and super-sealed. This scroll was full, with room for nothing else to be added. And, it was closed tightly, so that no-one could open it. Most Bible scholars think that this scroll represents God’s plans and purposes for the world. This scroll contains what God wants to see happen, and will see happen. And no one knows what these plans are. They are sealed. And since the scroll is double-sided, scholars take it to mean that the plans are made in full. Nothing surprises God. So then, these perfect plans and purposes of God, they are complete, and no-one knows what they are.

You know, we wish we knew what God had in store for us. We wish we could see his plans. But as frustrating as that is, be confident in one thing: God knows his plans. He knows what’s in store for us. He can see the beginning from the end. He knows exactly what’s coming up. He knows what he’s doing. Does it sometimes look like he doesn’t? Yes. But take heart. He will reveal himself to you in due time.

But the problem is, we want to be in control of things. We want to know. We want to be in charge of our own lives. We want to be able to make our own decisions. We want to sit on the throne. None of us are worthy to be in control of our own destiny. No one is good enough to be in control. As I’ve said before, I wouldn’t be a very good God.

That’s maddening at times. We wish we could just take control of our own lives but we can’t. We mess things up. Whenever we try to take control, we make messes. That’s why peace treaties fail. That’s why marriages fail. That’s why churches split. That’s why there is prejudice and pride, adultery and abortions. Because mankind thinks he can control his own life and future. But it just leads to pain and suffering and messes.

One day Jesus will return to earth as the conquering king. Someday he will bring all of the earth into submission to his plans. But until then, Jesus invades our planet by invading our hearts. I mean, we would love to have him conquer all the sin “out there” now. To storm in like a lion and kick all the evil out. But, as the lamb, he would rather deal with the sin within our hearts. His plans for your life include getting you straightened up, getting you submissive to his plans, getting you to say “yes”, and then using you to go out and help defeat the evil, one person at a time. That’s why he died for you and me.

Submission to God is tough. It isn’t easy to put his plans ahead of ours, his priorities ahead of ours, and his desires ahead of ours. It isn’t always easy to say “yes”. And so we try to reign ourselves, to rule ourselves, to be in charge of our own lives. But if we would only wait and let God’s plans unfold, we would find a much longer lasting reward. An untainted reward with no lingering guilt or emptiness. A reward that lasts longer than however many years we live on this earth. A reward that will not fade away.

Just as John may have been surprised to see a lamb when he expected a lion, we must understand that the best way to go up is to humble down. Allow him to control your life and you will find elevation beyond your greatest hopes.

HAVING A BAD DAY?

Job 1:20 “At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship."

So, you are having a bad day?

Let’s put your bad day experiences in the right perspective. Imagine with me if you will, Job living in the 21st century, in our day and time. Job, a modern day business person, - his business is doing better than most, he has a lovely family. They all get along with one another. Though they sometimes have differences of opinions and sometimes disappoint one another, they know how to forgive and forget. As an independent business man , Job is respected in his field of work and is seen as a pillar in the community. Job attends church regularly and is an active participant. As a matter of fact, his ten children were active missionaries to Honduras. Get the Picture?

So let’s listen in on Job’s conversation as he relaxes on the patio after a delightful afternoon with Mrs. Job. His blackberry buzzes relentlessly, his pager goes off violently, his Nextel begins to ring non-stop and the house phone is chiming extremely loud throughout the house. I can hear Job saying to himself “Lord, don’t these people know that it’s the weekend.” Lazily Job grabs the blackberry, because it’s near by. And from that point on, Job’s life will never be the same……“Hello” ……

Blackberry Message from V.P. of Operations: John
“Our largest customer has just merged with our major competitor…. And all competing contracts have been canceled as of Monday.”

Nextel Message from V.P. of Finance: Veronica
“The bank just called and has put a freeze on all our assets…… And they’re calling in all outstanding accounts immediately.”

House Phone Message V.P. of Sales: Mark
“Our second largest customer just phoned in and canceled all future orders…… And Job, they looking to return all excess inventory.

Door Bell Rings, its Sam, the Chief of Police, Job's long time friend:
“Job, you did allow the local Missions Team to use your corporate jet to fly to Honduras….Job, I’m sorry to report but the jet crashed about an hour ago….. There are no survivors.

Job is in shock. He’s devastated and in total disbelief. But he goes to his study, falls on his knees, and begins to pray to God, the source of his strength. Repeating the Lord’s Prayer over and over, knowing that God will see him through this day. Job is having a really bad day.

You will find in studying the Book of Job that God asked the question of Satan. “Have you considered my servant Job?”

The Bible did not record Satan’s direct answer, but the answer to the question is: Yes, Satan had considered Job. His response revealed not only what he had been up to, where he had been, but also who he had been trying to deceive. In modern day vernacular it would have sounded something like this: “Look God, let’s be real… if it weren’t for your all those things you keep blessing him with, I would have had him a long time ago…”

Satan unleashed an all-out onslaught upon Job. He did so with the hope that Job’s real passion was for the things that God had given him instead of God himself. And although things got worse before they got better, Job demonstrated that, in the end, his heart was turned towards God. At the darkest moment Job arose, tore his robe, and shaved his head; and he fell to the ground and worshiped. And he said: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; Blessed be the name of the Lord.” In all this, Job did not sin nor charge God with wrong.

Remember that God is your source of strength and when life has you backed in a corner. Remember Job and hold on.

REDEMPTIVE LOVE

Genesis 45:7 “But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.”

God was with Joseph. He was with him in his father Jacob’s house. He was with Joseph in the house of Potiphar. He was with Joseph in the dungeon and he was with Joseph when he ruled all Egypt. Joseph never forgot that God was with him—in good times and bad. Joseph never forgot that he was part of a divine plan. This is made clear in Genesis 50:20, a verse that perfectly sums up Joseph’s faith and his view of life: “You meant it for evil, but God meant it for good.” Joseph had lived as a slave and prisoner on the bottom rung of society, friendless and powerless, yet he never wore the chains of a slave mentality. He maintained faith in God, never doubting God’s power, love, or plan. We see how God used Joseph to save Egypt and preserve a remnant of his chosen people. Joseph has been called the most Christ-like individual of the Bible; in his life of suffering, victory, and redemptive love he bears the image of Jesus.

We might think that Joseph was giving his brothers a hard time to get revenge for how they had mistreated him. But as we examine the events surrounding our scripture, we can see that he was not harassing them for his own pleasure. Joseph felt compassion on them, wept for them, and was leading them, step-by-step, to repent of their sins. Joseph shows us that real love is redemptive; it is helping those we love come to God and live in a right relationship with God.

God wanted to use Joseph not only to save the lives of his family from starvation, but to redeem them spiritually. God wanted to change them from evil murderers, full of jealousy and hatred, into men of God, patriarchs of God’s chosen people.

Joseph chose to cancel his brothers’ treachery through forgiveness. His goal was reconciliation. To forgive, we have to give up some power—namely the advantage of being the injured party, and the right to get even. The Hebrew word “forgiveness” (salach) means “to have anger in one’s fist and to release it.” Joseph knew his relationship with his brothers was more important than his hurt.

Joseph declares that ultimately it was not his brothers who sent him to Egypt—it was God. God had a great purpose in sending him to Egypt ahead of them. Because Joseph believed in the sovereignty of God he is able to love and forgive his brothers

Is there someone in your life who needs your forgiveness? Is someone you know in need of redemptive love? Is there someone—a friend, neighbor, relative, who is far from God? You can be their Joseph, leading them back to God through your life and love. Don’t let the hurt of the past keep you from this. Let go of the pain of the past and look instead at their need. When people hurt us, it reveals that they have a need which only God can heal. We can be used by God to help bring about healing and reconciliation.

NEVER TIRE OF DOING WHAT'S RIGHT

2 Thessalonians 3:13 “And as for you, brothers, never tire of doing what is right.”

Doing right is a personal matter. Doing what is right lies squarely on the shoulder of the individual. No matter what others do, you know what you have to do. If you know the difference between right and wrong, then you know what you need to do to please the Lord. God makes this personal. The Bible says, “Never tire of doing what is right.” He puts it in our lap.

This is similar to what we hear in Joshua, “...as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” (Joshua 24:15) We may not be able to speak for others, but we can speak for ourselves. We may not answer for others, but we will answer for ourselves. Therefore our chief concern is that we are doing right. Every Christian is judged on his individual service. We will all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, by ourselves. No one will be there to run interference; none will offer defense. It will just be us and the record of all our deeds.

When we were little we tried to blame other kids for what we did wrong. My parents used to ask, "If they jumped off the bridge, would you jump off too?" or "If they stuck their head in the fire would you stick yours in too?" The lesson they were trying to get across was that we should act based on our own knowledge of right and wrong. That’s what God is saying here. Doing right is not an option in the Christian life. James says, “Anyone who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins.” (James 4:17) It’s not like doing right is a luxury enjoyed only by the super-righteous. It is all our responsibility.

When Paul says we are to never tire of doing right, he hints of the effort required to please God. It isn’t always easy to do the right thing. Sometimes it means disagreeing with a friend. They might get angry with you if you refuse to cover for their sin. It may require that you stand on principle. You could lose your employer’s approval. You may have to choose between money and integrity. Doing right could mean you have to stand up against a bully for someone else. Whatever the price of doing right may be, it will be repaid in the judgment. In the end, the cost of doing right will never be as high as the cost of doing wrong.

The Thessalonians lived in troubled times. They faced the threat of persecution. They feared the danger of corrupt teaching. They knew the challenges of the Christian life. They struggled with one another, and they struggled with personal issues. It wasn’t any easier for them to be Christians than it is for us. Isn’t that encouraging? If it wasn’t any easier for those who fleshed out Christianity in the first century, it isn’t any harder for us in the 21st century. You and I can enjoy the same peace they enjoyed. We, too, can have peace at all times.

That’s not pie-in-the-sky-theology; it’s a spiritual reality. Is it always easy? Never was. Is it possible? Always has been. How can we have peace in troubled times? We just need Jesus. We need the peace Jesus gives. Christianity is lived out one Christian at a time. But it is also lived out simultaneously within a community of other believers. Those who seek to live a life pleasing to God are encouraged by the hope of his peace. Serve God individually. Keep a watchful eye on one another and enjoy the presence and peace of Jesus.

THE ONE WHO ALWAYS IS

Exodus 3:14 “I am the one who always is.”

To the Hebrew people the statement “I AM” became a very holy phrase. They would refuse to say this word as they believed the name of God was too holy to repeat. What does it mean? It is the expression of what God is, the sum of his being and the greatest of all his names. A commentator paraphrased the verse: "If Israel shall ask: What are the nature and attributes of Him who hath sent thee to bring us out of Egypt? Tell them it is the eternal, self-existent, immutable being who only can say that He always will be what He always has been.” The Lord was saying, “Let Israel know this, I AM hath sent me unto you. I am, and there is none else besides me. All else have their being from Me and are wholly dependent upon Me”

This is his name: Jehovah (YHVH).

His name shows us a number of things:

(1) He is self-existent: he has his being of himself. In one sense God is continually and eternally recreating himself. And yet in another he is always the same. He is ever youthful and yet he is the “Ancient of Days.”

(2) That he is eternal and unchangeable, (immutable) and his character is always the same, yesterday, today, and forever.

(3) That he is incomprehensible. We cannot by searching find him out.

(4) That he is faithful and true to all his promises, unchangeable in his word as well as in his nature.

Whenever Jesus used this name some of his hearers would be scandalized and others would be confused. It was a name which was simply not used by them, because it was so holy. Only God would use it. But Jesus did so many other things which confused or offended his hearers.

We, however, must not be in any way limited in the use of this name. After all, the name of Jesus means “Jehovah saves”. Every time we say the name of Jesus we are using the name Jehovah and all that it means. And then the name is supported by all that the Kingdom of Heaven is: it is irresistible.

In the Old Testament we see that God calls himself by seven covenant names. Jehovah Jireh meaning the Lord my provider, Jehovah Rohi meaning the Lord is my shepherd, Jehovah Shalom meaning the Lord is my peace, Jehovah Nissi meaning the Lord is my banner or my conqueror, Jehovah Tsidkenu is the Lord our righteousness, Jehovah Shammah meaning the Lord is there (or the Lord is here), and Jehovah Rapha meaning the Lord who heals.

When you add up these redemptive names of Jehovah all you get is the name of Jesus. And the name of Jesus is powerful. It never matters what the name of the problem is. It is always inferior to the name of Jesus. When we have difficulties we should find out what to call it, and then remind both it, and ourselves that it has to bow its knee to his authority.

Moses was to remind the Israelites that God was sufficient to accomplish everything they needed. He is still that same God today, the one who always is.

WORSHIP - NOW AND FOREVER

Psalms 145:1 “I will exalt you, my God the King; I will praise your name for ever and ever.”

This is really David’s crown jewel of praise. This is the last psalm that has David’s name associated with it and the title, “A psalm of praise” is used only for this one. This hymn is characterized by praise, ¬ not thanksgiving or even prayer. It’s set apart for a specific purpose. It is magnificent in its beauty and almost breathtaking in its grandeur. This psalm has a special blessing associated with it. According to the ancient Israelites, who recited this psalm twice in the morning and once in the evening, a person who sang this psalm out loud three different times during the day would be “happy.”

David as God’s king adores Almighty God as his king above all kings. To “exalt” is to set on high above all others, it’s the expression of the greatest possible admiration. The phrase “for ever” means that David’s praise has no end, but when he adds another “ever” to it he forbids all idea of a close to his praise. Our praise of God shall be as eternal as the God we praise. Praise is the only activity that we’re called to do now that we’ll continue doing in eternity. We pray now, but there will be a time when our prayers will no longer be needed. We believe, but there shall be a time when our faith will be lost in sight when we see him face to face. We hope but a time is coming when what we hope for will come to glorious fruition. But, praise is with us now and will continue in heaven. We are to praise him “every day” regardless of how our day looks. When we’re up and everything looks good, we’re to praise him. And, when we’re down and things look dark, we’re still to praise him. Every day is a new opportunity to praise him.

C.S. Lewis says, “We praise what we enjoy because the praise not merely expresses but completes the enjoyment. It is not out of compliment that lovers keep on telling one another how beautiful they are; the delight is incomplete till it is expressed.”

And so, because of God’s position, we are to praise him daily.

Our worship should be in some ways like the object of our worship ¬- great praise for a great God. There is no part of God’s greatness which is not worthy of great praise. Spurgeon has said, “Praise may said to be great when the song contains great matter, when the hearts producing it are intensely fervent, and when large numbers unite in the grand acclaim.” No chorus or hymn is too loud, no band or orchestra too large, no psalm too lofty for the lauding of the Lord of Hosts.

While God is great, David recognizes that “no one can fathom” his great power completely. When we contemplate the immensity of God, we find ourselves surrounded by unknowable wonders. Paul put it this way in Romans 11:33: “Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out.”

I read recently about a Christian conference that was held at a church in Omaha, Nebraska. People were given helium-filled balloons and told to release them at some point in the service when they felt like expressing the joy in their hearts. All during the service balloons ascended, but when the service was over, 1/3 of the people were still holding on to their balloons. Don’t hold back ¬ let’s let our praise rise up to God.

A MODEL FOR COPING WITH GRIEF

2 Samuel 12:21 “His servants asked him, "Why are you acting this way? While the child was alive, you fasted and wept, but now that the child is dead, you get up and eat"

Every Christian deals with loss and grief at some time during their life. It might come in the form of the death of a loved one, the loss of a financial position, the loss of good health or the shattering of dreams. When this happens, we naturally ask, "Why?" and along with the original loss, we are sometimes tempted to lose our faith in God’s goodness. We enter a period of grief. How should we deal with this grief? Is it wrong to grieve? Has God forsaken us?

The first thing the Christian faced with a loss should understand is, that it is "okay" to grieve. Jesus said, "Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted." The word "mourn" comes from a Greek word that means "to lament or bemoan oneself". Jesus said that we who bemoan ourselves are to be envied - blessed. Why is that? Because those who mourn will be comforted. We are not helpless in our grief. He is here to give us the strength to go on and to live successful lives. In fact, he wants to change our losses into gains.

Our scripture offers a Biblical pattern for the grief process in a story from the life of David. You may recall that David committed adultery with Bathsheba, she became pregnant with his child and he had her husband killed. They then married but their child died soon after birth.

How did David respond? First, we see that David got down on the ground, fasted and prayed. That’s what we should do as well, when we are faced with new pain, disability or loss. We should humble ourselves, fast and pray. We should seek the Lord and ask him to restore us. When it became evident that God had not answered David’s prayer in the way he had hoped, the scripture says that he "arose". That is what we need to do as well. At some point, we must "rise above" our grief and sorrow, pick up the pieces and go on. Next, it says he "washed". Each one of us is God’s vessel to be used for his purposes. Then, he "anointed himself". Oil is a symbol of the Holy Spirit. We know that one of the very names used for the Holy Spirit is "The Comforter". At this point in the grief process, we must let the Holy Spirit minister to us in two ways: First, we need for him to comfort us in our grief. Then we need to let him empower us for the road ahead. Next, he "changed his garments". We need to do that as well. Put away the mourning clothes - God is about to do something new. Put on the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness. Then, he "worshipped" God. We, too, need to worship him. In his extreme situation, Job was able to say, "The Lord gives, the Lord takes away; Blessed be the Name of the Lord." Does that sound too difficult? If God is God, he deserves our worship whether things are going well in our lives or not. Once you really know him, you will find it possible to worship him - even in the worst of circumstances. Finally, he "went in to Bathsheba and lay with her" and she gave birth to Solomon. I’m sure that David and Bathsheba, like all parents, had dreams for that first child - dreams and hopes that were dashed and left unfulfilled when he died.

Do you have dreams that now seem destined to remain unfulfilled? Had you hoped that your life would turn out differently? Give up those hopes and dreams to God and let him give you new ones, just as he gave David and Bathsheba a new son. God has created us for good works that we should walk in them.

CUSTOM-BUILT RELIGION

Judges 17:5 “Now this man Micah had a shrine, and he made an ephod and some idols and installed one of his sons as his priest.”

A certain credit card company had a commercial set in the board room of some international corporation. A merger is in progress. The CEO says everything is set to be finalized on the 28th. One office flunky at the copier turns and says, "Sorry, I’m only available on the 12th. There is a moment of silence while the board members look at each other in wonderment. Then the CEO says, "OK, the 12th it is." A narrator then asks, "Wouldn’t you like to world to revolve around you?" The commercial goes on to inform you that if you will subscribe to their credit card you can choose your own billing date.

In fact, most of us would like the world to revolve around us. This is particularly true in the religious realm. Multitudes seek a Church or religious group that fits their preference. They go from one to another because they don’t like the preacher, the singing, the seating, etc. Failing to find the church that suits them, they may even resort to starting a new group or just quitting altogether and finding a service they like on TV. We think everyone should agree with us and everything should go our way. Unfortunately, (or fortunately) it seldom happens.

Our scripture tells a story of a man who thought everything should revolve around him. His name was Micah. Micah lived in the hill country of Ephraim, probably not too far from "The House of the Lord at Shiloh" where God’s people were supposed to worship at that time. No doubt there was something he didn’t like about Shiloh. Maybe it was just inconvenient for him to travel the short distance. In any case, he had built a little chapel of shrine at his home. Soon, Micah had built silver shrines to worship and he even hired a wandering Levite to be the priest of his self-made temple. It was no longer necessary for him to go to Shiloh and put up with the dull preaching, hard seats, and tasteless unleavened bread. In the end, his "homemade religion" turned out to be a real disappointment.

What was wrong with Micah’s little family cult? It was superficial: A surface thing only. He saw God as someone he could manipulate and move from place to place. As a guest in his spare bedroom. He thought he could buy God’s blessing by hiring a priest. There is no evidence any of his efforts to achieve God’s blessing changed his life in the least or made him a more spiritual man. It was self righteous. Everything he did was thought up in his own mind. No indication he prayed and asked for guidance, let alone consulted God’s Law. Even the priest he hired had no influence in his life. Micah said, "live with me and be my father." but the record states, "the man was to him like one of his sons."

Micah wanted a faith and religion that revolved around his every whim. He wanted something that would operate just the way he wanted it. No one else could please him, so he created his own. Micah proved he didn’t need God. He made his own gods. He had a personal, private, customized religion. We can do the same. No one will stop us as long as we do nothing illegal. But, like Micah, we will experience a terrible disappointment in the end because no religion is adequate to the needs of the spirit of man and no religion can grant forgiveness and eternal life except that which God has given us. The only way to enjoy these blessings is through Jesus Christ.

SOLD OUT

1 Kings 19:21 “So Elisha left him and went back. He took his yoke of oxen and slaughtered them. He burned the plowing equipment to cook the meat and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he set out to follow Elijah and became his attendant.”

On April 21, 1519, the Spanish explorer Hernando Cortez sailed into the harbor of Vera Cruz, Mexico. He brought with him only about 600 men, and yet over the next two years his vastly outnumbered forces were able to defeat Montezuma and all the warriors of the Aztec empire, making Cortez the conqueror of all Mexico. How was this incredible feat accomplished, when two prior expeditions had failed even to establish a colony on Mexican soil? Here’s the secret. Cortez knew from the very beginning that he and his men faced incredible odds. He knew that the road before them would be dangerous and difficult. He knew that his men would be tempted to abandon their quest and return to Spain. And so, as soon as Cortez and his men had come ashore and unloaded their provisions, he ordered their entire fleet of eleven ships destroyed. His men stood on the shore and watched as their only possibility of retreat burned and sank. And from that point on, they knew beyond any doubt there was no return, no turning back. Nothing lay behind them but an empty ocean. Their only option was to go forward, to conquer or die.

In our scripture we see Elisha, a simple farmer, who is suddenly and unexpectedly approached by the famous prophet Elijah and invited to accompany him and serve him as his personal attendant. When Elisha requests time to first go home and say good-bye to his parents, Elijah makes it clear that the decision to come is entirely Elisha’s to make. In other words, Elisha is free to stay or go. In response, Elisha not only chooses to accept the call, but he slaughters his oxen and feeds them to his neighbors, burning his plowing equipment to cook the meat. By doing this, he publicly and irrevocably declares his intention to leave his former way of life and follow Elijah.

What does it mean to be committed? It means making a firm choice. It means not worrying about keeping your options open, or leaving yourself a way out. It means pursuing something wholeheartedly, with no contingency plans to fall back on. It means being 100% sold out to a person, or a cause, or a goal; not holding anything back, not keeping anything in reserve.

The idea of being this committed – to anyone, or anything – makes some people uncomfortable. It feels risky. It feels like they’re going out on a limb. What if the person you’ve committed yourself to lets you down? What if the cause turns out to be not as worthy as you thought? There’s a lot to be said for caution. God isn’t calling us to be reckless or foolhardy. He doesn’t want us to just rush into things without counting the cost. But once we’ve determined the path we’re going to take; once we’ve discerned to the best of our ability what God is calling us to do; then what he wants are sold-out followers who won’t look back when the going gets tough. What he wants are disciples who are so committed to him that they will burn their bridges, or their boats, or their oxen, disciples who will jettison whatever is holding them back, and who will follow him wherever he leads. Are you that kind of disciple? Do you want to be?

When we undertake to follow Christ, he invites us to first count the cost. Because once we set out on that road, there will be many temptations to turn back, to turn aside from the path. Jesus wants us to consider carefully what we’re getting into, so that we don’t fail at a critical moment and dishonor ourselves and him as well. He wants us to determine in our hearts, once and for all, that when we follow him, there will be no turning back. Be committed today. Don’t look back. Press forward for God.

HONOR GOD BECAUSE HE HONORS US

Psalms 91:15 “He will call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him.”

We all want a place to go when we’re stressed or sad, tired or lonely, fearful or tempted, disappointed or discouraged. We want a place where we can unload our burdens and get some relief. When we feel insecure and inadequate we need a refuge - a shelter. We need a retreat. Prayer can transport us to such a place.

One young boy was telling the pastor that his mother said his prayers for him each night. "What do you mean, your mother says your prayers for you?" the puzzled minister inquired. The youngster replied, "When mom tucks me in she always says, "Thank God he’s in bed." Well that’s one way of utilizing prayer as a way to get away from it all, but there’s much more.

Talking to God is much more effective when we’ve been walking with God. We need to seek his face, not just his hand. Let’s say we need a favor. Who are we going to ask, a friend or a stranger? Naturally we’re going to ask a friend because we have a relationship with him. The closer the friend the more we may feel inclined to make bigger requests. That’s why we need to constantly nurture our friendship with God. Friendship is a two-way street. God is the initiator but we’re given an opportunity to reciprocate.

If we come to God only when we’re in trouble and not on a daily basis - what kind of friendship is that? That’s a one-way street kind of friendship. We’re just using God. On the other hand, when we have a lifestyle of continually walking and talking with God, like we do our other friends, we can call on him and he will answer. But be forewarned - he may call on us too. Psalm 50:15 puts it this way, "and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me.”

God wants us to honor him when he answers our prayers. When he delivers us he expects some sort of appreciation. Isn’t that just good manners? Don’t we at least say thanks to our other friends when they help us? Our Father in heaven isn’t asking us to do something he doesn’t do. God certainly honors those who participate in a friendship relationship with him. Our scripture reinforces this principle.

Can you imagine that? God honoring us? That’s precisely what he says he will do for those who make him their dwelling. The Hebrew word for "honor" literally means "to make heavy."

Here’s what happens. We go to God with a heavy load of burdens and we leave with a heavy load of blessings. That’s how God honors us. He doesn’t stop at delivering us from our difficulties. He goes on to make us heavy with blessings.

Why wouldn’t we want to honor him in return? Psalm 91 is not just a song of confidence that God will provide a place for us to get away from it all. It is also a song of thanksgiving and adoration.