Look What I Did!

Then Gideon made it into an ephod and set it up in his city, Ophrah. And all Israel played the harlot with it there. It became a snare to Gideon and to his house. Judges 8:27

Gideon had just defeated the Midianite Kings. He then asked his men for all the earrings and other gold items they had taken or possessed. (Red Flag) Once melted down he had it made into the shape of an ephod, the overgarment the priest wore.  Hum??? Maybe it was just to remind them of their victory, but it soon became an object of worship, thus disobedience. Most of the memorials that God requested were made of stones. Maybe he was thinking He would show better thanks with gold, or perhaps just a “hint” of pride. Trying to honor God with something made of man’s pride led to their downfall.

The glory always belongs to Jesus, and He usually doesn’t display Himself in gold and silver, the measure of the world’s wealth, but by humility, sacrificial blood and praise to His Father. Wonder what we would do if, if by prayer and fasting, we were able to overcome the evils of government in our world. Would we rise up in praise of our strength and cunning victory or would we bow in praise to Him who gave us the victory. Would the pride of victory cause us to take away free choice? God never forced the Israelites to obey and serve. It was always an offer with a promise, then a choice. Victory came from the choice to obey. Do I blame my lack of victory on God, or on my lack of obedience? Do I dictate to Jesus what victory should look like? Do I think victory means a future of forced, regulated, legislated choices (my expected choices), or do I celebrate His victories, give Him glory, and offer good choices to those around me knowing they are still free to choose obedience or disaster?

Jesus, I so want others to make the choices that I see available in Your Word. Yes, I even want to force those choices upon them. But You didn’t, and I can’t!! When a victory comes, do I want to take just a little credit and hang a banner that points 90% to You, but keeps 10% for myself! My ephod may not be made of gold, but it may just as easily be an attitude hidden in the corner of my heart that says, “Yes! I obeyed, and some of that success is because of me!!  God, forgive me! Cleanse me of all unrighteousness and remind me that, ALL, ALL, ALL the Glory belongs to YOU!!!!

Blow and Shout!

Get up! The Eternal has given you victory over the army of Midian! We strike now. 16 He divided the 300 men into three companies, and he gave them all trumpets and empty jars with torches placed inside of them.17 Watch me. Do what I do. When we come to the outskirts of their camp, do what you see me doing. 18 When I and my company blow the trumpet, I want all of you to blow the trumpets all around the camp and to shout: “For the Eternal and for Gideon!”….22 When the 300 trumpets sounded, the Eternal set the Midianites fighting against each other with their swords. Judges 7: 15b-18, 22

After God honed down Gideons army from 32,000 to 300, He proceeded to ask the impossible- blow you trumpets and break your pitchers. What??  What good will that do? But, they obeyed, because God and Gideon said so! Then God did the seemingly impossible and turned the entire Midianite army against each other. It doesn’t say a word about Gideon’s army using any swords. When Gideon obeyed against all human odds, God stepped in and began the defeat. Actually the 300 had the easiest job. It was the other tribes who pursued and fought and totally overcame the Midianites. Victory was assured from the beginning, but God used Gideon to get the ball rolling. Had Gideon not obeyed they would have been overtaken by the Midianites and changed history.

Once again, there is so much more to this chapter, so many lessons, but the theme is definitely obedience in the face of impossible odds! 32,000 Gibeonites against 135,000 Midianites! Oops! 10,000 Gibeonites against 135,000 Midianite. Uh, no, 300 Gibeonites against 135,000 Midianites!! I don’t think I have ever faced such odds, but maybe I have. Sometimes, it feels like Satan has unleashed legions of spiritual forces against me and I don’t see how I can be victorious.  

Then, I remember what God said through Isaiah. “10 Fear thou not; for I am with (you), be not dismayed; for I am your God: I will strengthen (you); (yes), I will help you;( yes), I will uphold you with the right hand of my righteousness.” Isaiah 41:10 KJV

We often forget that when He asks the impossible of us, He just might want to do the impossible through us. Will we step forward with our trumpets and pitchers, (no sword) and shout for the Lord when our life is on the line? Much to ponder!!

Oh, Jesus, help us to have the strength to believe and obey against impossible odds. Actually, all odds are impossible without You! Sometimes it’s harder to have faith in the small things than the big ones. Speak, Jesus, and help us to listen regardless of the size of the challenge and be ready to take up our trumpets and shout against the enemy!

Come Here, Child

The day is coming when you will make a request in My name, but I will not represent you before the Father. 27 You will be heard directly by the Father. The Father loves you because you love Me and know that I come from the Father. John16:26-27 – The Voice

Jesus is preparing the disciples for his departure from this earth. He is giving the truth about the Father and Himself one last shot. Apparently they still have some questions about Him. Their big request all along has been, “Show us the Father!”  In this scripture He is telling them that very soon they won’t need to go through Him to talk to the Father, they will go directly to the Father with their requests.

Oh, how I love this truth. I love the truth of having a brother, friend, Savior, healer and comforter in Jesus, BUT, oh how I need a FATHER! A Father I don’t have to schedule an appointment with, curtsey before, go through several doors to get to and wait for Him to notice me. I can burst in, run and jump into His lap and laugh or cry knowing He is pleased to see me. He wants to hold me and to meet my needs. Yes, He may even need to discipline me, but I never leave His arms in despair or shame. He extends His grace, mercy and forgiveness and never withholds His love from me.

Father, I am so thankful that You made a way that I could come directly to You in any situation and feel Your love and pride because I am Your beloved child. I can be assured that You are doing and allowing everything in my life for a loving and redemptive purpose. I am never alone in my pain, sorrow or life’s challenges. I can’t wait to run into Your loving arms and bask in that love for eternity!

Home Sweet Home

“I’ve loved you the way my Father has loved me. Make yourselves at home in my love. If you keep my commands, you’ll remain intimately at home in my love. That’s what I’ve done—kept my Father’s commands and made myself at home in his love.   John15:9-10

Jesus had just described the metaphor of the vine and the branches and staying connected to the Father through Him. He operated out of the Father’s love and passed that love to His disciples. And now He encourages them to be at home, completely comfortable in His love.

Home is the place where you let your hair down and relax, where you feel secure and protected. Home is a warm fire on a cold night, where you can be yourself and not worry about trying to meet other’s expectations. Home is where the heart is! Is that how you feel about Jesus?  Do you feel you can let your hair down and relax and feel protected in His presence?  Do you enjoy the warmth of His presence in a cold world, not trying to impress Him with your churchiness or holiness? Is your heart so totally one with His, that you are comfortable no matter where He sends you or what He asks of you?

Jesus, help us to feel totally at home in Your love today.  Even when we fail or sin, we can feel perfectly loved and know Your immediate forgiveness. You know us intimately, understand us completely and love us unconditionally. Keep working on us until we fully accept that love. We will only receive that love as we sit by the home fire daily with you.

Do Doo, Do Doo

 Then he said, “Do you understand what I have done to you? You address me as ‘Teacher’ and ‘Master,’ and rightly so. That is what I am. So, if I, the Master and Teacher, washed your feet, you must now wash each other’s feet. John 13:12-13

Jesus has just finished washing the disciple’s feet. Much to their surprise, He, the Master, had acted as a servant. He had just stated very clearly that leaders lead by example, by demonstrating what obedience looks like in real-life situations. He showed them leaders are to be humble and serve their followers. Followers are to follow and do what their leaders do.

Some of us are very familiar with this scripture. In our discipleship groups we asked what we have seen Jesus do in our lives in the last week? Today begs a different question. What have I done to be Jesus to someone this week? How have I loved with Jesus love this week?  Whom have I served like Jesus served?  And the list goes on…..  Jesus demonstrated what He wanted His disciples to DO!  He wasn’t so concerned about what they knew, but what they did! He was saying, if you believe me, watch what I do and imitate me.

 Knowing is important, but doing represents understanding. Do I just know the Word, or do I apply action to my understanding? Does my joy come from digging deep into cultural context, descriptive nuances, and word meanings, all of which help me understand scripture and are exciting, or from actually applying this understanding to my lifestyle and interactions on a daily basis? Jesus opens our eyes so He can use our hands and feet for His glory.

Jesus, thank You for the opportunity to discover new truths each day as we study Your Word. You created a desire within us to know You and show those around us how much You love and care for them. Now, Father God, help us to humbly practice WWJD (What Would Jesus DO), today.

OH No, Not Them

“If anyone hears what I am saying and doesn’t take it seriously, I don’t reject him. I didn’t come to reject the world; I came to save the world. But you need to know that whoever puts me off, refusing to take in what I’m saying, is willfully choosing rejection.  John 11:47 – The Message

I love the way the message expresses Jesus’ mission. He says here and in John 3:17 that He did not come to reject and punish, He came to offer life and save the world. He did not come to condemn, but to bring light and dispel darkness. He did not come with His finger pointed in our face but with arms open wide to receive us. He came to free us from the curse, not to curse us. He came as righteous, powerful and mighty, but never proud and haughty. He came in truth and love, not in manipulative revenge.

Why, if Jesus came in all these positive and saving ways, do we Christians often come off as finger-pointing, self-righteous do-gooders who deserve blessings? Why do we try to force everyone into our box of faith? Why do we condemn more, instead of love more? Why do we reject those for whom He died? Why is it easier to love the sinner “out there” than to love the sinner we live with or raised?  The people Jesus spoke to, had all kinds of truth from age old teachings, and evidence of miracles and yet they still didn’t take God seriously. Jesus just said He didn’t reject those people, the ones that frustrate us to no end, but often we reject them.!  We need to ponder our understanding of God’s love.

Jesus, Friend of sinners, Light in the darkness, Hope of the lost, Savior of the world, help us to stop condemning those whom You are not rejecting and show us how to love them in the same way You do. Absolutely impossible without an infilling of Your love and Spirit. Impossible without surrendering our expectations and claim on their lives. It won’t happen until Your love in is stronger than our judgment.  Jesus, it won’t happen unless You do it in and through us as we surrender our judgement and we take You seriously!

Don’t You Care?

 43 Then Jesus shouted, “Lazarus, come out!” 44 And the dead man came out, his hands and feet bound in graveclothes, his face wrapped in a headcloth. Jesus told them, “Unwrap him and let him go!”45 Many of the people who were with Mary believed in Jesus when they saw this happen.  John 11:43-45

Martha, Mary and Lazarus were good friends of Jesus. He had shared many meals in their home. When Jesus hears that his good friend Lazarus has died, he purposely delays going to Bethany to visit Mary and Martha for two days. What? Doesn’t He care about them? Then, He comes and in the presence of many Jewish unbelievers, He calls Lazarus from the dead and raises him to life. Many who were watching believed in Him.

. Over and over, I am discovering more about miracles and why they are performed. It seems in our culture with the influence of the health and prosperity gospel, we think we deserve the miracle of healing because we are believers and God promises us health, wealth, wisdom, and prosperity, to entice others to follow Him.  It always seems to end up for our personal benefit and ease in this life. The more I look deeply into the miracles of healing by Jesus, the more I realize it has very little to do with the person being healed and everything to do with salvation of the lost around them. It appears Jesus doesn’t heal so believers will be glorified, but so that sinners will believe!

I remember when my 5 yr. old niece developed cancer, how I prayed for God to heal her so my brother and wife would become believers. I imagined her with a powerful testimony, becoming a missionary and being mightily used by God. I was devastated when she died and mad at God. What good would her death do when He could have healed her and brought about their salvation. In this case, Jesus knew her death would not only be the instrument of their salvation but also a call to ministry for my brother. If she had been healed, they could very well have believed for a time and then gone back to normal once the newness and excitement of her healing wore off. Her death brought about a shocking reality and lasting transformation. God can be glorified in life or death, healing here or ultimate healing and life in glory. Both are miracles of His love and grace!

Jesus, thank You for revealing Your healing power to Your children and using the miracle of healing for Your glory in the salvation of the lost. I pray You will display Your glory in me for the good of the salvation of others and that I will never deny Your healing power but participate in any way Your Will requires.  Help me to see it is not about my comfort, but about the healing of others from eternal pain and death.

Walk the Talk

If I don’t do the things my Father does, well and good; don’t believe me. But if I am doing them, put aside for a moment what you hear me say about myself and just take the evidence of the actions that are right before your eyes. John 10:36-37

Jesus has been using the idea of a good shepherd to explain who He is, but the Jews weren’t getting it. When He said He and God were one, the Jews exploded and wanted to stone Him! Finally, His last defense was to point to the good things He had done, forgetting what He had said. Even then they refused to believe Him.

These verses shout out, “Actions speak louder than words!”  I may speak about love while displaying disinterest. I may speak about generosity and give sparingly. I may speak about kindness and respond with rudeness. I may expound on discipline and give in to desire.  I may shout out, “share Christ,” and walk in silent fear. Confession comes from the mouth, but action comes from the heart.  If I’m not living it, I’m not believing it!

Lord, this is a challenge for many of us who love to talk and understand much more than we practice. You know our hearts and minds, Jesus, continue to show us when our walk isn’t measuring up to our talk.  Continue your work in our hearts until both walk and talk are genuinely one in Christ. A slight twist on the idea of having the mind of Christ is … “Let this heart be in me which was in Christ Jesus!” Help us to grow in heart and mind in You!

Wise In Whose Eyes?

2-4 Don’t run from tests and hardships, brothers and sisters. As difficult as they are, you will ultimately find joy in them; if you embrace them, your faith will blossom under pressure and teach you true patience as you endure. And true patience brought on by endurance will equip you to complete the long journey and cross the finish line—mature, complete, and wanting nothing. 5 If you don’t have all the wisdom needed for this journey, then all you have to do is ask God for it; and God will grant all that you need. He gives lavishly and never scolds you for asking. James 1:2-5 The Voice

The Christians of James day had faced many trials and persecutions. Some experienced difficult and sometimes life threatening challenges daily. When you see trouble coming, your first response is to run as fast as you can in the opposite direction or fight back. Fight or flight is an natural human response. James is trying to encourage these believers that patient endurance will bring ultimate joy and final victory. If you feel you just don’t have the patience and wisdom for this journey , ask God, who will grant you wisdom and patience to finish the race.

Wisdom comes with age. Wisdom comes from experience. Wisdom comes from the counsel of others. Wisdom comes with patience. “Yes” and “No” to all of the these. In my 79 years, I have suffered many challenging and heartbreaking seasons. I have been counseled by pastors, seasoned Christians, and professional counselors, who have all imparted wisdom from books and their personal experiences. Some have been very helpful and others just added more doubt or fear depending on the situation. Those who pointed me to scripture and God’s wisdom were the most helpful. Only God can give me the strength to patiently endure in my most difficult struggles. Only God can give me wisdom to see beyond to struggle to my eternal destination. Only God can help me look back and see all the ways His wisdom had protected me and prepared me for the next trial. NO, I do not look forward to tests and trials, and I’m still working on patient endurance, but I know His wisdom with patient endurance is best and will lead me to eternal peace and joy in Heaven!

Thank You, Jesus, for patiently enduring the most tragic and painful trials while on earth,, that You might not only understand my heartaches, fears and trails, but You know exactly what I need to face and endure those times patiently, knowing that finishing the race will make it worth it all.

Peak-a-Boo, I See You

 Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I run away from where You are? 8 If I go up to heaven, You are there! If I make my bed in the place of the dead, You are there! 9 If I take the wings of the morning or live in the farthest part of the sea, 10 even there Your hand will lead me and Your right hand will hold me. 11 If I say, “For sure the darkness will cover me and the light around me will be night,” 12 even the darkness is not dark to You. And the night is as bright as the day. Darkness and light are the same to You. Psalms 139 7-12

This is my favorite Psalm and my life scripture, the one I go to over and over to remind me who God is and who I am. It helps me keep a proper perspective in life and encourages me daily in my walk with Christ.

Try as we may, we cannot hide from God or escape His presence. This is good news for the believer and bad news for the sinner. As believers Christ has promised never to leave us or forsake us. Whether we are on the highest mountain of joy, or in the deepest valley of temptation and despair, Jesus has promised to be with us there. In verse 4 He tells us that He even knows what we are going to say before we say it. And in verse 16, He says He was there when we were in our mothers womb. None of us cannot hide our hearts or actions from the all-seeing eye of God. God knows all and sees all! His eyesight is 20-20 in all directions and His presence is everywhere we are. It is comforting for the obedient and embarrassing and condemning for the disobedient.

Have you ever thought, it’s dark out and no one can see what we are doing. Or have you wanted to make a hateful remark about someone and because you didn’t say it, you weren’t guilty. God sees. God knows. Most of all, God is forgiving and compassionate when we admit our sinful thoughts and behaviors and ask for forgiveness.

Father, we are thankful for Your presence in our lives 24/7. Because You know all, see all and are in all, You encourage us, empower us, and reveal Yourself to us. You also correct us when necessary. You are everything we need, wherever we are and whatever we are doing. You promised never to leave us or forsake us! Thank You, God.