Author Archives: cazehner

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About cazehner

I'm a woman who loves God's Word, the Bible. And I love sharing what it is God reveals to me through his Word. I pray that everything I write is consistent with Scripture, and that everyone who reads this blog will be drawn closer to the Savior. I am praying for you.

July 14

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Isaiah 33:1-37:13

There is a lot going on in these chapters of Isaiah. The story of Hezekiah is retold. The prophet stresses again that disobeying God leads to disaster.

But I want to share just two verses today. Simply put, this is my prayer for all of us today:

The Lord is exalted, for he dwells on high:
he will fill Zion with justice and righteousness,
He will be the sure foundation for your times,
a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge;
The fear of The Lord is the key to this treasure.
Isaiah 33:5&6

AMEN.

May Jesus be your sure foundation today.

July 13

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Isaiah 29-32

My sister had dinner with some old friends from high school last night. It had been years since she had seen some of them and it provided a time to reminisce and catch up on each other’s lives.

One of the women told my sister she has no use for organized religion. She said she goes to God on her terms. That makes me sad.

The problem with organized religion, according to Isaiah, is the rules. “The Lord says; These people come near to me with their mouths and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is made up only of rules taught by men” (29:13)

Churches can get caught up in rules. Women must never wear slacks. Their heads must always be covered. You have to be baptized as an infant. You have to be baptized as an adult. You must be sprinkled. You must be dunked. You must take Communion every Sunday. You must not eat meat on Fridays. You must repeat a prayer ten times. You must not use electricity or drive a car. You must worship on Saturday. You must worship on Sunday. You must not go to movies. You must not drink alcohol. You must not dance.

I could go on. I’m not saying rules are unnecessary. However, God is much more interested in our hearts in his spiritual kingdom.

I think organized religion is a good thing. It is intended to provide a community of believers with teaching and encouragement. It should offer a place where believers go to prepare to share Jesus with their neighbors and friends. It should be a place where God is exalted and worshiped, where Jesus is proclaimed as God in the flesh, and where the Holy Spirit is free to work in the hearts of those who attend. It should not be a place where godless people feel comfortable.

I love attending my church where our denominational identity is in its name. You can know where we stand before you enter our doors. So I think organized religion is a good thing. But let’s not allow the rules to overshadow the real reason we gather. Let’s not make our churches a place where following rules is more important than our hearts’ condition.

Because our hearts’ condition is what God is most interested in. When we meet Jesus face to face he isn’t going to ask us how often we had Communion. He’s going to ask us if we know him as our Savior and Lord. 

I’m praying for my sister’s friend. The Bible is clear that you can’t go to God on any terms but his. There is no other name under heaven by which we can be saved. And that is Jesus. 

I’m praying for you, too. I pray that each of us will attach ourselves to a Bible-believing body of Christians who worship God in spirit and truth. I pray that our churches will provide the teaching and encouragement we need to share our faith with lost souls. May we enjoy the best of what organized religion has to offer and use it to further God’s kingdom.

July 12

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Isaiah 10:5-12:6, 28:1-29

Remember that the people to whom Isaiah was writing these word pictures were not looking forward to Christ’s second coming. They were looking forward to the physical birth of Jesus, the babe in Bethlehem. It’s true that the material birth and the spiritual second coming have parallels. But we are wrong if we think Isaiah skipped over Jesus’ coming in the flesh and jumped right into 2013 America.

From the beginning of time God has used hardship and trials to draw people to himself. When the nation of Israel was blessed for their obedience, the surrounding nations noticed. The surrounding nations also noticed when Israel was punished for disobedience.

God wants us to know he has a reason for everything that happens. And his reason is the salvation of souls. Whether it’s war in ancient Israel, or the battle in our own souls, God wants to reach the lost and he will do whatever it takes.

Isaiah 28:23ff uses the word picture of a farmer. He needs to work the soil, break up the clumps, level the surface. But there wouldn’t be a crop if he just continued to plow. The farmer stops plowing and sows seed. But he doesn’t just keep throwing seeds on the ground. Eventually he stops sowing and allows the plants to grow.

Then comes the reaping. When the reaping is complete, comes the threshing, the grinding, the beating to prepare the crop to be used to it’s fullest. It’s only after all of this that the crop can be kneaded into loaves and baked for bread or boiled to make tasty stew.

God is telling us that he will plow, he’ll sow seed, he’ll reap and thresh, he’ll put us over a fire until we are that finished work. It’s not always comfortable to be a crop. But our Farmer will do what it takes to produce people he can use to feed people who hunger for him.

Are you experiencing some reaping? Some threshing? Are you in hot water? Remember that God is shaping you into something beautiful. Trust him with the process.

July 11

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Psalms 87, 125; Isaiah 1:1-4:6

“Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.” (Isaiah 1:18)

This beautiful verse has been an encouragement to me more than once over the years. But I didn’t realize until today that the verse actually begins with, “Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord”.

Let’s think about this, God says. The first 17 verses of this chapter talk about God’s frustrations – his loathing – for religion. He’s sick of their sacrifices and hates their religious festivals. They follow God’s instructions for these things to the letter but their hearts are full of sin.

They put on a good show. But God is not fooled.

Verses 19&20 remind us that if we are willing (which involves a conscious choice) and obedient (which involves more than just going to church), then we will be blessed. It goes on to remind us that if we resist (which also involves a choice) and rebel (which comes from the heart), we will suffer the consequences.

So yes, God promises to forgive sin and wipe the slate clean with Jesus’ blood.

IF

Once again God makes it plain that he’s got conditions. Good people, religious people will go to hell unless they accept Jesus as their Savior. There is no other way to the Father.

Let’s be reasonable about our beliefs. Let’s make a conscious, informed choice to follow God today, to repent of sin and accept forgiveness through his Son. God hates it when we just go through the motions.

Dear God, I pray that your children will come to you in Spirit and Truth, that we will choose Jesus and accept his work on the cross in a purposeful, meaningful way. Help us not to follow you blindly, but reasonably and honestly. May our actions reflect our heart’s relationship with you. Bless us and make us a blessing to someone who needs you today.

July 10

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Psalms 75, 76, 77, 80

Have you ever had a bad day? I mean a really, really bad day – or week – or year when nothing goes right, when your heart is broken, when you lose hope?

The writer of the 77th Psalm was in distress. His soul refused to be comforted. He cried out to God in anguish. He groaned. He was too troubled to speak.

But he didn’t allow himself to stay there. Look at 77:5:

“I thought about the former days, the years of long ago; I remembered my songs in the night.”

Then in 11&12 he says:

“I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. I will meditate on all your works and consider all your mighty deeds.”

Then he goes on to do just that.

Satan would have us live defeated. Let’s not give him even one minute. I think the psalmist had the right idea. Instead of dwelling on all the reasons you have to be distressed, try thinking about all the ways you are blessed. Starting with Jesus’ work on the cross on your behalf. Consider the ways you have seen God work in your life instead of continuing to agonize over whatever is troubling you.

I’m not saying it’s wrong to hurt when bad things happen. Jesus wept when his friend Lazarus died. I’m just suggesting with the psalmist that counting your blessings goes a long way to defeating Satan’s attempt to steal your joy.

Father in Heaven, some of us are hurting. Some of us have reason to be distressed and downhearted. We give you our grief, our fears, our anguish. Help us to praise you, to remember how blessed we are in spite of what is troubling us. Help us not to dwell on the problems we face, but to look upon you our Savior, our Healer, our Shepherd, our King, our Friend, Almighty God who has the power to help us through the darkest days and who promises to go with us every step of the way. May we who go to you with broken hearts, know the strength that comes from you and the joy that comes from praising you.

July 9

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2 Kings 18:13-19:37; 2 Chronicles 32:1-23

Sennacherib found out the God of the Bible is not like other gods after all. He tried to bully Hezekiah and the Jewish people into joining him, bragging how powerful he was and how many nations he had destroyed. But Hezekiah prayed and God encouraged him to stand strong. 

In the end, the Assyrians were defeated, destroyed by God, and the Jews didn’t have to lift a finger.

As I read these chapters today I was reminded that there are Sennacheribs yet today. There are people who would bully Christians to come over to their side. Christians are called terrorists by our own government. We are called haters by the media when we voice the truth about homosexuality or adultery or greed. Christians are made fun of if we don’t party, if we don’t go to a ball game played during church on Sunday.

Let’s face it. Taking a stand for Jesus isn’t as easy as it used to be here in the good old USA.

But let’s be encouraged today by Hezekiah’s story. He laid it all out before the Lord in prayer. Then with confidence, Hezekiah told the people to be strong and courageous. There is a greater power with us, he reminded them, than with the enemy. We have God on our side and no one… not Satan himself… can stand against him.

My  prayer for us today is that we will all stand strong. May we stand for the truth in love. May we not back down because someone who seems to have power threatens us. Whether it be a government official, a boss, or a neighbor, let’s not allow ourselves to be bullied. Remember, God is greater than anything Satan can throw at us.

I wish I could promise an outcome like the Jews experienced in Hezekiah’s time. They got their victory before they had to go to battle. But standing strong could mean being willing to suffer for the Name. It’s true in some parts of our world and we can’t assume it can’t happen to us.

Be encouraged. Be strong. Remember that as a believer in the Lord Jesus, you have the God of creation on your side. Don’t let anyone bully you out of holding on to him, on holding on to the Truth of Scripture.

July 8

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Micah 4:1-7:20

“In the last days”, Micah says. There is a lot of speculation as to what those last days entail. Some people have devoted countless hours studying and calculating the details of “the last days”. Did God throw us a tidbit of information, a clue to some great mystery? Whether we are talking about Isaiah or Micah or Revelation, is there a hidden message that only a few are able to understand? And if that is true – whose message is the right one in light of the many theories out there?

What is God hiding? I believe the answer is, nothing. Our God wants us to know him. He has laid out his plan, explained himself, shown himself to be true. I don’t believe he would change his MO about “the last days.”

Yesterday my pastor pointed us to the Scripture that says a day is like a thousand years to the Lord. So it’s been like two days since Jesus went to the cross. We are bound by time. God is not. We are in the last days. But so was Paul. So was my grandfather who died in 1966.

Here’s what I believe God wants us to know. Life is hard. Evil exists. There are consequences for rejecting God. The temptation to sin will be with us every day we walk this earth. We will experience times of victory and times of defeat. We will know hunger and thirst for God when we don’t walk with him. We have a Savior in the person of Jesus Christ. Forgiveness is ours for the asking. And until God returns, he will use every means possible to draw all men to himself.

The pictures the prophets paint concerning the last days are not meant to hold a key to a mystery. They are written to encourage us, get our attention, point us to Jesus, and remind us that God is still on the throne and one day, we’ll be in his presence for the rest of eternity. I can’t get caught up in the details someone has interpreted from Scripture, which may or may not happen. 

Jesus is coming again. That’s really all I need to know. Because when he does, I want to be counted with the redeemed. I want my family and friends to be counted, too. I want to meet Jesus surrounded by many who are there because I was faithful.

Dear God, you have given me another day. May I use it to honor you, to reach out to someone who needs you, to represent you in everything I do and say. And if you come back today, may I be ready. May you find me busy sowing and reaping, sharing you with others, being the woman you intend for me to be. May Jesus be glorified.

July 7

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Isaiah 22:1-23:18; 2 Kings 18:7b-8; Micah 1:8-3:12

Don’t God’s words do good to him whose ways are upright? (Micah 2:7b) Isn’t it true that when our hearts are right with the Lord, reading the Bible brings comfort and hope? It’s also true that reading the Word brings conviction and grief when we aren’t obeying him.

The answer to that for some is – so don’t read it. Don’t go to church if the preacher’s sermon on sin makes you feel bad. 

Micah’s words for us today concern those who wear the name ‘Christian’ like a good-luck charm. They think they can live according to their own rules and God will bless them because they say they are Christians.

Micah 3:8-12 says they despise justice, distort what is right, are wicked, accept bribes, “yet they lean upon the Lord and say, ‘Is not the Lord among us? No disaster will come upon us.'”

Really?

Saying you’re a Christian doesn’t make it so. Going to church, tithing, teaching Sunday School or even pastoring a church doesn’t make you a Christian.

Read God’s Word. His requirements for wearing his Name are there. But be warned. If you read the Bible, the words might convict you and drive you to your knees. Reading the Word just might make you feel bad about yourself. Didn’t Paul call himself a wretched man when face to face with his own sin?

Christianity is not a “feel good” religion. It’s not even a “do good” religion as much as it is a “be holy” relationship with a holy God. The good news is, through Jesus Christ our Lord we can enjoy that relationship! And when we are in that right relationship with God, his blessings include love, joy, peace that passes human understanding.

Are you a Christian? Really? I pray that is true for each of us today. Wear Christ’s name proudly and remember who it is you represent. Remember what it cost Jesus to give you that name. 

Holy God, I pray that we who call ourselves Christian will be Christians from the inside out. Search us today, Lord. Point out those sins we need to confess. May our hearts be yours through Jesus’ blood. Thank you for the privilege of wearing your Name.

July 6

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2 Chronicles 31:2-21; Isaiah 18:1-21:17

I wonder what the Jews thought when they heard that Egyptians and Assyrians would worship God, that he would accept them as his own and bless them for their obedience. I can’t think it made them happy.

But as a non-Jew, it makes me happy. God, through the prophet Isaiah, is laying the groundwork for the church. Egyptians and Assyrians, non-Jews, will worship God together. They will make vows to God and keep them. God will protect them and call them his people right along with Jewish believers. No longer a matter of circumcision, but a matter of acknowledging God.

I thank God for his church today. For Jewish believers, American believers, German, Chinese, Iraqi, Russian believers. And I am burdened for those saints in countries where their lives are threatened because of their belief.

We in America don’t know what many Christians around the world know. It’s easy for us to sit in our comfortable pews and forget that there are brothers and sisters who live in real danger today, who suffer unspeakable torture for the Name. And our news agencies have made it easy for us to ignore it by their lack of coverage.

Let’s pray for the worldwide church. Let’s ask God what he would have us do on behalf of those believers who have no voice in their countries. Isaiah tells us Christianity is no longer just a Jewish religion and it is certainly not just an American religion. May we have a heart for our brothers and sisters all over the world.

God, I thank you that your kingdom is spiritual, that I don’t have to have Jewish blood in my veins to be your child. I thank you for Jesus whom you sent to save the world. Forgive us if we live in this little bubble and enjoy our freedom in the USA without remembering there are millions of your people in this world today who don’t have what we have, who fear for their lives because of their decision to follow you. Have mercy, Father. What would you have us do, Lord? May you find us faithful. May you find us willing to obey.

July 5

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2 Chronicles 29:3-31:1; Psalms 66&67

Hezekiah was determined to follow God. And many Jews were ready and eager to follow Hezekiah. They worked together to consecrate the temple and got it done in only sixteen days. They got rid of anything that had been used in the worship of false gods.

Then Hezekiah invited the nation to join him to celebrate the Passover. Jews came to Jerusalem from all over the land. In fact, so many people came with animals to be sacrificed that there weren’t enough consecrated priests to handle them all. So Hezekiah prayed that God would “pardon everyone who sets his heart on seeking God” even if they weren’t clean according to the law.

And God answered Hezekiah’s prayer.

Isn’t that exciting? Do you see yourself in this picture? God allowed the Old Testament Jews a glimpse at what was to come. We no longer need to go through a physical cleansing in order to go to God. We don’t need to be a better person for God to want to forgive us.

While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Psalm 66:18-20 says, “If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened; but God has surely listened and heard my voice in prayer. Praise be to God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld his love from me!”

That’s all it takes. Repent of sin. Pray. Let God do the cleaning up after you give him your heart. Jesus is ready and willing to cover your sins with his precious blood and make you clean. 

Let’s set our hearts on seeking God today.

Gracious Father, thank you once again for your written Word. It’s so amazing to read it and see the beautiful pictures you paint of your Truth. Thank you that there are no rituals we need to perform in order for you to hear us. Thank you for prayer. Thank you for access to your Presence through Jesus. May we be seekers of You today and every day.