2 Chronicles 30:9 Turn to Me and I will Turn to You

For if you return to the Lord, your brethren and your children will be treated with compassion by those who lead them captive, so that they may come back to this land; for the Lord your God is gracious and merciful, and will not turn His face from you if you return to Him.” - 2 Chronicles 30:9 KJV

Sometimes we get lost in the midst of our journey.  Our roadmap gets turned upside down, or perhaps even worse is blown out of our hands and out the window by a burst of wind. We find ourselves lost with no compass, with no guide.  That seems to be the case with regards to my intentions with this blog.  The original intent, to document my yearly walk through the Bible, no longer seems feasible.  For one, I find myself repeating observations on the same stories.  The word is supposed to be new every morning, but instead of listening to what the Lord is saying through that word, for the past few months, I have been more intent on what I am going to write on a daily basis.  As opposed to hearing what God is trying to say to me, I've become caught up in my own words. As a result, not only have words begun to fail me, but circumstances have seemed to spiral out of control to the point where not only can I not write, but the rest of my life has become unmanageable as well.

My mother is coming to the end of her journey here on this earth. It's a daily challenge to watch her struggle with all of the functions she once took for granted.  Our elderly cat is in the same position.  Our financial situation is more precarious than it has been in the past.  This old house is fraught with problems as a result of the recent rains which were much needed, but have caused both the roof and basement to leak.  I have ongoing dental problems where every time one problem is resolved another crops up in it's place.  Tenants left my mothers rental house in total disrepair.  The income which she counts on will be lost until we can bring it back in livable condition.  And on, and on, and on.  When I read the above list, it doesn't seem so bad, but there are times when I am so overwhelmed all I can do is cry.  'O God',  I want to scream, 'when is it ever going to end?'   It is then that I hear his voice, when I get to the point that I no longer have words, when the silence of my situation surrounds me.  It is then I hear him gently say, 'Turn to me and I will turn to you.'  It is then I become aware once more of his mercy and compassion.  It is then that I know that all the rest, every circumstance that surrounds me is fleeting.  He is the answer.  His mercies are new every morning. 

Where I will go with this blog I cannot say, but I will turn.  I will trust without a road map, I will turn, I will follow.

2 Kings 17: No Other Gods

Do not forget the covenant I have made with you, and do not worship other gods. Rather, worship the LORD your God; it is he who will deliver you from the hand of all your enemies.” - 2 Kings 17:38-39 NIV

What are the other gods that we worship:  the ones that we think will be able to deliver us from our enemies?  Is it our politicians, our political system, our government?  They continue to prove themselves to be pretty inadequate.  They would have us believe they have the solution when they can barely take care of their personal lives.  Is it our doctors, our pediatricians, our onicologists, our hospitals, our drugs?  They have a pretty spotty success rate at best.  They lead us down the path of the promise of eternal youth, only to be met by yet another health problem, a side effect they never anticipated.  Do we trust in our education, our position, our achievements?  Do we trust in our bank account, our investments, our financial institutions?  They can all disappear in an instant.  Do we worship our pastor, our Sunday school teacher, or the televangelist?  They may provide insight into the ttruth, but even they can never deliver us.

There is only one who can deliver us from the hand of any and every enemy we are facing, the Lord God and he doesn't extract a pound of flesh in order to do so.  All he asks is that we call on him.  Such a simple thing and yet it is usually the last thing that we think of to do.