Monthly Archives: January 2016

Jan 11 – Do You Feel Safe?

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Job 29-31

As I read Job’s words this morning about how he wished he could go back to the old days when life was easier and he felt safer, I had to think about what life has been for me here in the USA these past six decades.

Life was simpler, of course, when I was a child. I was born a few years after WWII ended, and our country was still glowing in the victory. I was confident that my sisters and I had a roof over our heads and food to eat. (I wasn’t aware of the struggle our parents endured to make those things happen)

I felt safe, running from house to house in our neighborhood, playing outside from morning to night. I remember some hype about possible nuclear war, the Russians coming, and people building bomb shelters. Even then I didn’t feel unsafe.

Not even during the Viet Nam War did I worry about an enemy attack on our little town in Ohio. It was war on someone else’s turf; far, far away.

We were pretty comfortable for decades in our safe, secure homeland of America. But 911 changed that. And we live with the knowledge we are not impenetrable. Gang wars on our streets, domestic and foreign terrorism is a reality we live with every day.

But as I read Job it occurred to me that Job’s enemy – and ours- is Satan. We are in the middle of a spiritual war, played out in flesh and blood conflict. I’m afraid we’ve become so concerned about our Middle Eastern enemies we’ve neglected to recognize the real danger of the subtle erosion of our freedoms and spiritual Truth.

Friend, there is a war on your soul. I know many believe that if they ask Jesus into their hearts it’s enough, they are home free. They feel secure in their salvation, impenetrable. Can’t touch this, they say to Satan.

But I wonder. Let’s not feel so safe we ignore the subtle attacks Satan continues to throw our way; the acceptance of sin as normal, the watering down of the Gospel, tolerance, looking at God as our buddy and not as a Holy God who demands holiness of His children.

I want to be a good soldier in God’s army. I want to put on the armor of God, to study His Word to show myself as approved by God to do His bidding. I want to take my enemy seriously, his threats as personal.

If you read God’s Word you will be encouraged with the fact that He promises never to leave or forsake us who know Him. He promises to be our shield and protector, our light, our guide. If you read God’s Word you will never see God saying to sit back and enjoy the ride. This is war.

Do you feel safe in the middle of this spiritual battle? If you are an active member of God’s army  you can feel totally safe. I would suggest, however, if you are too comfortable, too complacent, satisfied to sit back and let others fight the war, beware. The wolf is at the door.

Dear God, I pray for Your army today. May we recognize our real enemy, and be ready to battle. May we not be guilty of feeling too comfortable. May we be in Your Word every day. May we spend time praying, searching, listening. May we be an army of faithful soldiers. Protect our souls from Satan’s attacks, and give us the strength and courage to defeat Satan in our homes, our places of work, our churches, and our world. For Jesus’ sake.

Jan 10 – What is fair?

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Job 24-28

Doesn’t it seem that in this life, good people should be rewarded with health, happiness, and prosperity, while bad people should suffer the consequences for their evil? Does it seem to you like God ignores wrongdoing in some people? It’s not fair.

Job seems to be feeling this way. 24:12 says:

From the city men groan, and the souls of the wounded cry out; yet God does not pay attention to folly.

This chapter is full of examples of people getting away with murder. (and adultery, and dishonesty, …) God’s answer to the question comes later in the book and I hope you read it for yourself.

Let me remind you of something in the mean time. You are not God. But if you spend time getting to know God through the study of His written Word, you will see a God who loves every man, woman, and child. And He is zealously working in every life to draw each individual to Himself.

You can’t know how that is happening. You can only be sure it is happening. We only see a fraction of what is going on in anyone’s life. Even ours.

Being rich or successful or healthy doesn’t guarantee happiness or contentment, any more than struggles indicate sin. There are tortured souls at every level of society. I think of Robin Williams.

But there are blessed souls at every level of society, too. I think of a blogger friend of mine who suffers from ALS, and who continues to express his love for God from inside his paralyzed body. I think of my sister who continues to serve God while mourning the loss of her 22 year old son. I think of people in the Middle East who are being murdered with praise on their lips because they love the Lord.

I think what God would want us to know from Job’s example is to let it go. Quit looking around and comparing your life with anyone else’s. God wants you to look toward Him.

Do you want to talk about “fair”? Here’s one for you. You are a sinner. You’ve offended, disobeyed, disgusted God more than once. If God was “fair” according to our standards, you’d be broke, with painful sores, and alone with no hope.

Instead of questioning God about your idea of what is fair, you should be thanking Jesus for going to the cross. He was sinless. He never earned God’s wrath or deserved any consequence for anything. Yet He took on your sin. He died on a cross so you wouldn’t have to pay for what you’ve done.

Is that fair? No. But it is grace. And it’s your’s for the asking. Everything that has happened in your life up to this moment happened to bring you to the Savior. Don’t let this chance pass you by without falling on your knees in repentance, or in gratitude if you’ve already accepted Jesus as your Savior.

Then keep your eyes on Jesus. He is more than fair.

Jan 9 – Longing

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Job 21-23

What do you long for? Is it love? Or health? Or more money, fame? A career? Or something else?

Job longed to talk to God. Chapter 23 tells us Job wishes he knew where to find God, to learn from God, to be heard of God, and to be defended by God. Job says no matter where he goes, forward or backward, left or right, God just isn’t there. Then he says, “But…”

But He knows the way I take; When He has tried me, I shall come forth as gold. (23:10, I added the bold)

We might not understand why things are like they are in our lives. Job certainly didn’t understand his circumstances. But we can find great comfort in knowing God knows! He cares, and He is present even if we can’t see Him.

It’s funny, Job longs to see God, to face God. And yet, in verse 15 he says: What am I thinking? I’d have a heart attack if I actually got what I want. God scares me!

Be careful what you wish for.

Maybe the longing in our hearts isn’t really about finding love in a spouse, or having all that money. Maybe it’s about having complete confidence in the One who loves you to death.

We are privileged to be able to read God’s heart right here in black and white, in the pages of His Holy Word. We can know for certain what Job only longed for.

And God can fulfill every longing of your heart when He fills you with Himself through the precious blood of Jesus.

Dear God, we long. We dream, and wish, and hope. And sometimes we hurt. But I thank You for the reminder that it’s You we ultimately long for. It’s Your Presence that is most important. It’s Your fellowship that’s sweeter than any human fellowship. Thank you for knowing what we do not know, for wanting what’s best for us even if it’s not what we think we want. Thank you that we can know the longing of our hearts when we repent of sin, and accept Jesus as our Savior and Lord. Thank You for You.

Jan 8 – A Statement Of Faith

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Job 17-20

Job is feeling insignificant, like what he is saying and experiencing isn’t important. His hopes and dreams are lost, and his friends seem to only want to explain it away. Job tells them there isn’t a wise man among them. (I smile)

In chapter 19 Job says even if he is suffering consequences for doing something wrong, like his friends suggest, “my error lodges with me.” Then he continues to try to explain to his friends what he is experiencing and feeling in the moment. I can almost hear him plead, “Just hear me.”

But then Job gives a powerful statement of faith, beginning in 19:25:

As for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last He will take His stand on the earth. Even after my skin is destroyed, yet from my flesh I shall see God; whom I myself shall behold, and whom my eyes will see and not another. My heart faints within me!

Once again this man of God acknowledges that God is alive and well, and one day Job assures his friends he will see God. Job is absolutely sure that this life is just the opening act, that the heart of the matter lies beyond the grave.

And Job trusts God even during this difficult and confusing time of life. My prayer is that you, too, have the same resolve. Even if you never get the answers you think you deserve during this lifetime, I pray the thought of seeing your Redeemer face to face causes your heart to faint within you, too. I know for myself, just thinking about looking into Jesus’ eyes brings joy and anticipation.

And in a very real way, the promise of being in the presence of the One who loved me and gave Himself for me, makes the cares of this life a bit more bearable, a bit less consuming.

I know that my Redeemer lives!

 

Jan 7 -Useless Talk and More

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Job 14-16

The title my NASB gives for chapter Job 15:1-16 is, “Eliphaz says Job Presumes Much.”

In verse 3 of the chapter, Eliphaz asks: should a wise man argue with useless talk, or with words that are not profitable?

Then he continues with, “your guilt teaches your mouth.” (vs 5)

Now I know much of what Job’s friends tell him is off base. But I had to stop and consider Eliphaz’s question. Because I recognize that sometimes I let my opinions influence what I believe to be true. When that happens, my arguments are useless talk and nothing more. I need to be careful not to allow my guilt, my sin, justify my belief.

For example, if I over eat, I might adopt the opinion that gluttony isn’t that serious a sin – or not a sin at all. I can argue my point all day long, but my words are not profitable. And my truth is a fantasy.

Eliphaz also says, “Indeed, you do away with reverence and hinder meditation before God.” (vs4)

And that stopped me in my tracks. It’s one thing to rationalize my sin. It’s another to try to convince someone else of my lie. But when I realize that doing so comes between me and my Lord, I fall on my knees in repentance.

I don’t want anything to come between me and my God who loved me so much He died for me. I don’t want to mislead anyone with opinions I adopt to justify sin in my life. And I don’t want to misinterpret Scripture in order to make me feel good about myself.

Father God, I pray once again that I will be a student of your Word, that I would not have an opinion that is in any way contrary to Yours. I want to know the Truth as You have spelled out. And, Dearest Lord, I certainly don’t want to do away with the reverence I have for You. I worship You. I honor You. I bow before You. Let nothing hinder my meditation before You.

Jan 6 – I Will Trust God

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Job 10-13

Job is hurting. He’s at his wit’s end and doesn’t know how to make things better. He doesn’t even know why his life has turned out like it has. He feels alone, ridiculed, misunderstood. He wants to ask God some questions. He even says he’s ready to argue with God. And he can’t figure out why God is treating him like an enemy.

Sound familiar? Have you ever found yourself crying out to a silent God? Do you have the “why” questions that are not being answered? Does it feel like God has turned on you?

Job doesn’t know what we know: that his losses are of Satan, not God. He doesn’t have the privilege of opening God’s Word and reading God’s heart.

But we do.

The answers you are looking for aren’t found within you, or in some self-help book, or in Oprah. The answers are found in the pages of God’s Word.

I like Job’s point of view. He said, even if God kills me, I will trust Him.

There’s the answer you are looking for.

A mother tells her young son not to play in the street. Why? “Because I said so.” A father insists his teenage daughter be home by 11. “Trust me,” he says when she asks why.

Often, when we mature, we realize the answers to our “why” questions. And maturity comes from studying God’s Word, by getting to know God’s heart, and by trusting Him in every circumstance, allowing Him to prove He can be trusted.

Somehow, when our relationship with God is mature, the questions we have just don’t seem all that important. God replaces our uncertainty with Himself.

Then, with Job, we can say that no matter what comes, “I will trust God.”

Dear Father, I like being your child. But sometimes my curiosity, or my hurt finds me asking, “why?”. God, I want to trust you, even if I never have the answers I think I need this side of heaven. May I not let my questions get in my way of a close relationship with You. Because, Dear Lord, nothing is more important than the sweet fellowship I enjoy as your child.

Jan 5 – Sometimes Silence Is Golden

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Job 6-9

Job’s friend, Bildad, told the grieving father that his children got what they deserved. Then he went on to say that if Job would get right with God, God would make him rich again. Way to pour salt into that wound, Bildad.

Often when someone dies, well-wishers say things like, “It was God’s will”, or “God needed another angel”, or “It was his time”, or the ever-popular “Life goes on.” I wonder if the one who grieves is ever comforted with such words.

Let me suggest that when we are in the presence of a grieving person, we need not speak for God. A simple, “I’m praying for you” or “If you need to talk, I’m here,” or “I love you” may be what that dear one needs, rather than giving an answer to a question he or she isn’t asking.

Sometimes just being present, really present, is exactly the comfort a grieving person needs. Sometimes silence really is golden.

Dear Comforter, I pray for anyone reading this blog who is grieving today. Grief that comes from the loss of a loved one, the loss of a relationship, or a job, or a home, or health. Give them a sense of your Presence, and may they allow You to be the comfort and strength they need to walk through this time. And, Father, I pray that you will give us all a sensitivity toward those who grieve. Remind us that we don’t have to have all the answers. Remind us we don’t have to say a thing.

Jan 4 -Don’t Blame God

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Job 1-5

My chronological reading plan takes a break from Genesis and has me reading in the book of Job today. I hope you take time to read these five chapters, too.

God is sovereign. That means nothing that happens happens without his ok. Satan never slips one past God. But God allows life to happen.

With it comes good times and bad, success and failure. We see Job, a godly man who had everything he could have ever wanted. Maybe his neighbors looked at Job and said – God sure has blessed that guy.

But when God allowed Satan to throw some devastating tests at Job, people blamed God. His servant assumed the fire that consumed the sheep and servants came from God. His own wife told Job to curse God and die. And Job’s friend, Eliphaz said, “According to what I have seen, those who plow iniquity and those who sow trouble harvest it. By the breath of God they perish, and by the blast of His anger they come to an end.” (4:8-9)

But is that what we see here? Are the things that happened to Job a result of sin in his life, or maybe God’s anger toward him? Is God’s permission given to Satan to inflict harm the same as God causing harm?

I look around and realize we’re no different today. God doesn’t always get credit when good things happen. But He sure gets blamed when things go south. No matter if it’s a tornado, an epidemic, a mass shooting, or even a red light when we’re late for work, people often point a finger at God and ask, Why did you do that, God? Or they get angry with Him. Or they cut Him out of their lives.

But is it God or Satan we should curse?

Our Sovereign God is allowing Satan to have some freedom here. But He also is offering Himself in the midst of any trouble Satan throws our way. In fact, the gift of choice He gave us at creation enables us to choose Him no matter what.

There are those who will say that God orchestrates everything that happens in this life. But I see a different lesson here in Job. The difference is between God’s permission and His actions. (This is not to say that He never intervenes. There are times when bad things do happen as a direct consequence of our sin. That is another lesson.)

I know that, when my dear nephew died in an automobile accident in 2012 God’s strength and Presence was exactly what we needed to put one foot in front of the other. What Satan meant for evil, God used to encourage us and draw us closer to Him.

So my prayer for you is that you will take God up on His offer to stand with you, too, when bad things happen. Don’t waste time blaming or being angry with God. He is eager to bless you even in the darkest hours of your life.

Our Loving Heavenly Father, I pray that you will reveal Yourself to us as we read the account of Job. You are sovereign. You are good. You love us and Your one desire is to fellowship with us. May we put aside blame and just rest in Your Presence today, no matter what circumstances we are facing.

Jan 3 – And He Died

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Genesis 8-11

Noah’s death is marked in chapter of 9 of Genesis with the words, “and he died.” Noah, who was one of only eight people saved from the flood. Noah, who built the ark according to instructions given by God Himself. Noah, who can be traced to be the father of us all. He lived an extraordinary life.

And he died.

God is reminding me today that that just about says it all for all of us. You will  have quite a few years less than Noah’s 950 years on this planet. But your days are equally extraordinary because you are the only you. Your experiences have never, and will never be repeated. Your choices are your choices. Your joys, your hardships, your dreams, your accomplishments, and your failures are yours alone.

And in every second of every day you live, God is seeking you as though you were the only person on Earth. Your’s is an extraordinary life.

And you will die.

And just like Noah, or Adam, or Peter, or Paul, or Suzie Q down the street, you will stand before God to account for your extraordinary life. The only thing that will matter at that point is your relationship with the living God. Did you believe or not? Did you obey or not? Are you a child of God according to Scripture (and not according to your own thinking) or not?

Dear God, I am reminded that this life I am living is going to end some day. I will die. And, although I don’t want to obsess about that event, I want to live my life with the goal before me. I want to enjoy these days as I prepare to meet You face to face. You, who died for me, who frees me from the chains of sin. You who loves me, guides me, molds me, uses me, and blesses me every day. You make my life extraordinary. And I love you.

Jan 2 – The Lesson Of The Flood

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Genesis 4-7

It’s hard to read about the flood. It’s hard to imagine millions of people, including babies, drowning. It’s frightening to realize how intense is God’s anger toward sin. He even said He was sorry he’d ever created man, and he was grieved in His heart.

Some people will shake their fists at God and rant over the unfairness of a world-wide flood. Some will shake their heads and deny it ever happened. Both are wrong. And both miss the point.

If we look for signs that the earth was drenched in water, we might find it interesting. It might even confirm that the Bible is true. But even that misses the point, which is: GOD HATES SIN!

He HATES my sin. He HATES your sin. He HATES the lie I told, the “adult” entertainment you watch, my anger, your coarse language. He HATES it.

And unless we have faith in Him like Noah had, we will die in our sin, like all those people died in that awful flood.

God has provided an escape plan, however. In Noah’s day it was the ark. Today it is Jesus. But read Genesis, dear one. There was… and is… only one means of salvation. Just one.

For myself, I never want God to be sorry He created me. I never want to grieve His heart by the choices I make to sin. I want to resist sin, accept His provision of salvation, and live every day I have on this earth as one who clings to the God of my salvation.

I want the same for you.

Dear Savior, it’s a new year and many of us consider it a new beginning. I pray that as we make our way through 2016 we will do so holding on to You, pleasing You, loving You, and riding the waves in the safety of Your salvation. May we not forget how much You hate sin. And may we allow You to help us resist the temptation to sin every time. You are faithful. May we be, too.