Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham!” “Here I am,” he replied. - Gen. 22:1 NIV
There is a big difference between being tested and being tempted. Enemies tempt, friends test. Enemies tempt us because they know it may bring about our downfall. Friends test because it they know it will make us a better, stronger person. Satan only tempts us. He is not interested in our well-being. He is not interested in our becoming better, in our becoming all we were created to be. He is only interested in destroying the promise.
God, on the other hand is our friend. He doesn't want to see us torn down, only brought up. All of the testing that we receive of God is for our own good. It is important to recognize the difference. God tries us to prove what we are made of. Just as the dross is separated from gold when it is melted down, it is when we are tried in the fire that our love for the Father, if it is true, is shown. As God told Abraham when he stopped him from sacrificing Isaac, "Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.” - Gen. 22:12 NIV
Sunday, January 4, 2015
Saturday, January 3, 2015
Genesis 9-12: Get Thee Out!
Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will show thee:
And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:
And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. - Gen. 12:1-3 KJV
How many times does God tell us to get out and we don't hear or refuse to acknowledge that we have heard. God never meant for us to have comfortable stagnant lives. He meant for us to have lives of purpose, lives that produce blessing for others and for ourselves. We can't do that sitting in our recliner in front of the TV. 'Get away,' God says, 'away from all that is comfortable, away from all that is familiar, from all we have ever known. Get up, get out and I will show you where you are to go.'
Most of us are waiting for God to show us what he wants us to do, but that's a good excuse for doing nothing. God tells us to get up, get out of or comfort zone and then, and only then, he will show us where we are to go and what we are to do. Get up and get out, or as the King James translation says, "Get thee out!"
Friday, January 2, 2015
Genesis 4-8: And God Remembered
And God remembered Noah, and every living thing, and all the cattle that was with him in the ark: and God made a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters assuaged; - Gen. 8:1 KJV
I don't know about you, but I've been through the flood. I've been in waters so deep, I tired from doing nothing but treading water and feared that drowning was eminent and even preferred to the constant waves that threatened to take me under. But, just like Noah, God remembered me. While I may have lost sight of him, I was never gone from his sight. He remembered me, he lifted me up above the waves. He set my feet on solid ground. Not only does God save, He restores. We are washed clean of all the old muck in which we were entangled. He strips everything off that was pulling us down. He sets us free. He does not remember our sin, the state we were in, but he remembers us.
Thursday, January 1, 2015
Genesis 1-4: In His Image
And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. - Gen. 1:26-27 KJV
God, the creator of the universe is so majestic, so great, so grand that we are unable to fully understand him. One of the things I have had the most trouble comprehending is how can we be created in God's image when he obviously must be much larger than us if he holds the entire universe in the palm of his hand. I could never get comfortable with the idea that we were just miniature replications of God.
My thinking has changed somewhat after observing the death of my mother. I watched her body deteriorate and her mind fail, but she never lost her desire to see heaven and her Savior. On the morning of her death, when I held her hand for the last time, I became acutely aware that the earthly body which she left behind was nothing more and had never been anything more than the outside covering. Just a shell, like one that the hermit crab lives in for a while then abandons for a bigger and better model. Our spirit, the essence of life, is the being that was created in God's image.
As Jesus, God's own son told the woman at the well, "God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth." - John 4:24 KJV
If anyone knew the Father, knew what the essence of God was, it was his Son. How different our lives would be if we could see the world, our lives, all of the material surroundings as the temporary fixtures they truly are. What would the next year bring if that knowledge permeated our existence...if we saw ourselves as we truly are, spirit beings created in the image of God?
So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. - Gen. 1:26-27 KJV
God, the creator of the universe is so majestic, so great, so grand that we are unable to fully understand him. One of the things I have had the most trouble comprehending is how can we be created in God's image when he obviously must be much larger than us if he holds the entire universe in the palm of his hand. I could never get comfortable with the idea that we were just miniature replications of God.
My thinking has changed somewhat after observing the death of my mother. I watched her body deteriorate and her mind fail, but she never lost her desire to see heaven and her Savior. On the morning of her death, when I held her hand for the last time, I became acutely aware that the earthly body which she left behind was nothing more and had never been anything more than the outside covering. Just a shell, like one that the hermit crab lives in for a while then abandons for a bigger and better model. Our spirit, the essence of life, is the being that was created in God's image.
As Jesus, God's own son told the woman at the well, "God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth." - John 4:24 KJV
If anyone knew the Father, knew what the essence of God was, it was his Son. How different our lives would be if we could see the world, our lives, all of the material surroundings as the temporary fixtures they truly are. What would the next year bring if that knowledge permeated our existence...if we saw ourselves as we truly are, spirit beings created in the image of God?
Wednesday, December 31, 2014
The Beginning and the End
It has been a very trying year. I have neglected this blog and, I confess, my habit of reading through the Bible every year as well. There are all of the minor things that we let get in the way, painting the exterior of our house, remodeling, travel, etc., but it is the major things that distract us the most; those once in a lifetime occurrences that consume our past, present, and future. This year it was the dying days of my 95 year old mother. She lived a very long, and up until her last six months, faithful, productive life. Her last days were consumed by pain. Pain so intense even hospice could not figure out how to make her comfortable. It is not easy to watch someone you love go through such agony. But, joy comes in the morning and that morning came at last on December 6th. Now she rests with all the saints who have gone on before. Her death was liberating, not just for her, but for all of us who loved her. She has been freed and is finally at peace and so are we.
I don't know how it all works. If our spirit soars to heaven at the moment of death or if it is a gradual process. I do know that the last week of my mothers life, she saw something that set her mind at ease, something that she could look forward to. My belief is that she saw the heavenly city. "I've been so foolish," she told me that last week, "so foolish." I think that is what we will all say when we see heaven and compare it with the worries and woes we experience here on this finite earth. We are all so foolish chasing after things that really won't matter when we see the Father's face.
My inability to focus has gone and we are ready for a new year of reading through God's word.
We end this year with John's words to the church, our words to you for the coming year.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen. - Revelation 22:21 KJV
Tuesday, June 10, 2014
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.
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.
Tuesday, June 3, 2014
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.
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