The Downside of Hope

Games of chance, the Lottery, and any casino on the planet, are just a few examples of bad places to set your hope. There are far more options than these, though. In fact, there are many which are deceptively attractive as object of hope in our culture. One of them should have been pretty well shattered by our COVID-19 world-wide pandemic. Where I live, the pandemic hasn't really touched us, so my community thinks they don't have to worry about it. The Bible speaks to that sort of shortsightedness.

Then the five men departed and came to Laish and saw the people who were in it living in security, after the manner of the Sidonians, quiet and secure; for there was no ruler humiliating them for anything in the land, and they were far from the Sidonians and had no dealings with anyone. (Judges 18:7 NASB)

The life of the people of Laish doesn't sound bad at all, does it? It's the life we want, nice, quiet, peaceful, you can almost hear the idyllic music playing in the background as the camera pans across their fertile valley...And then Dan shows up.

...and came to Laish, to a people quiet and secure, and struck them with the edge of the sword; and they burned the city with fire. And there was no one to deliver them, because it was far from Sidon and they had no dealings with anyone, and it was in the valley which is near Beth-rehob. And they rebuilt the city and lived in it. They called the name of the city Dan, after the name of Dan their father who was born in Israel; however, the name of the city formerly was Laish. (Judges 18:27-29 NASB)

The city of Laish is no more, not even the name. The tribe of Dan, possibly an evil people, certainly idolatrous, were their downfall. But only because they had separated themselves from the rest of their people. They made themselves easy prey for one of the smallest tribes in Israel. 

In the Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures, the Septuagint, the attitude of the people of Laish is described as having "hope". They dwelt in hope. They lived peaceably in hope. And they lived quietly and confident on hope. Sounds nice, doesn't it? But it was hope placed in the mistaken belief that things would always continue as they are. When is that ever true?

We, as disciples of Jesus, have no security in the consistency of this world. Change is constant in this place, globally. Our hope must be set on another place, a "heavenly city", not made with human hands, where our Savior intercedes for us (Hebrews 9:11,13:14). So, in this world, let us take care, be alert, and represent the Kingdom of our true citizenship.

Hope is vital for our walk as disciples of Jesus, but it is also dangerous when misplaced. Let us focus on the only true object of hope, and be ready to defend it before any who ask us (1 Peter 3:15). The Savior awaits us in a City which is our true home. Let that place be our sustaining hope in this degenerate world, which is passing away.

Scripture quotations taken from the NASB. Copyright by The Lockman Foundation

God's Righteous Judgment

“O enemy, destructions are finished forever!

And you have destroyed cities; even their

memory has perished. But the Lord shall

endure forever; He has prepared His throne

for judgment, He shall judge the world in

righteousness, and He shall administer

judgment for the peoples in uprightness.

“The Lord also will be a refuge for the

oppressed, a refuge in time of trouble.

And those who know Your name will put

their trust in You; for You, Lord, have not

forsaken those who seek You. . . .

“The nations have sunk down in the pit

which they made; in the net which they

hid, their own foot is caught. The Lord is

known by the judgment He executes;

the wicked is snared in the work on his

own hands.

     Meditation. Selah.”

        Psalm 9:6-10, 15-16 (NKJV)

This psalm marks the Bible’s stark contrast between the redeemed and the lost; salvation and judgment. There is no middle ground with God and people don’t like to hear that. The idea of coming judgment is not popular either but it’s a recurring theme in Scripture and it is inevitable.

Judgment of sin is in keeping with God's holy character. God is not capricious or vindictive. His judgments are sure and always righteous. The Lord is known by the judgments He executes. Indeed, God often prefaces judgment by stating that those being judged will know that He is the Lord. (See, e.g., Exodus 7:5, Ezekiel 25:11)

The solemnity of God’s judgment is emphasized by the double exhortation of “Meditation. Selah.” (v. 16)  Readers are urged to ponder God’s coming righteous judgment and seriously consider whether they are ready for that day.

It is not just those who have “destroyed cities” (v. 6) or committed other crimes who will be judged, but even those who “forget God” (v. 17).  Indeed, all those who have not put their faith in Christ will be judged. 

Thankfully, God is merciful and He would rather forgive than judge. That forgiveness is a blessed refuge for sinners who put their faith in Christ. Everyone who knows Jesus and puts their trust in Him will be saved and not forsaken.

Consider the seriousness of this message and who God would have you tell of His plan of salvation that they may escape the judgment to come.

Thursday Devotional - Led to a Dead-end?

Have you ever had a time when you felt God led you in a certain direction and then it didn’t go at all the way you thought?

I wonder if Paul ever felt like that. He was arrested by the Jews and appealed to Caesar, but that just led to trials before various governors and kings. He faithfully shared the truth about God, but it didn’t seem to make a difference in the lives of the listeners.

Acts 26:29-32  ²⁹ Paul replied, “Short time or long—I pray to God that not only you but all who are listening to me today may become what I am, except for these chains.”

³⁰ The king rose, and with him the governor and Bernice and those sitting with them. ³¹ After they left the room, they began saying to one another, “This man is not doing anything that deserves death or imprisonment.”

³² Agrippa said to Festus, “This man could have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar.”

Paul was passed around and never released. I wonder if he ever second guessed being led to appeal to Caesar. I think I would have felt led to a dead-end!

I’ve certainly felt led to a dead-end several times in my life. One big situation was over a decade ago. When we were studying the book of Isaiah, I felt led by God to look into adopting orphans. We did various research on orphans and adoption and eventually were led to consider foster children. God even provided a weekend foster conference nearby the one weekend we could attend! Afterwards, we registered for foster parent orientation. However, we were literally locked out of the orientation class! We couldn’t even get rescheduled for the next month, because they weren’t having one. It was very confusing. In hindsight, God was preparing our hearts, but it sure felt like a dead-end at the time.

We can follow God’s lead, even if it seems to end at a dead-end. He sees the big picture. His purposes and ways are best. His timing is always perfect.  

Isaiah 55:8-9 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

Alice

Our Peace

Then the Lord said to Moses,  “Tell Aaron and his sons to bless the people of Israel with this special blessing:

‘May the Lord bless you
    and protect you.
May the Lord smile on you
    and be gracious to you.
May the Lord show you his favor
    and give you his peace.’ 

Whenever Aaron and his sons bless the people of Israel in my name, I myself will bless them.” Numbers 6:22-27

We all want a little peace, don’t we?  I realize we have reached the mid-point of what has been a very challenging and trying year.  From learning to stay at home from fears over the Coronavirus to civic unrest, there is a lot to be concerned about.  Yet today, I feel thankful.  Thankful that I am loved and supported by my wife and children.  Thankful that I have a church community that is very supportive.  Thankful for a job and coworkers whom I both admire and respect.  Thankful for a home that I honestly never thought I would have.  Maybe you do not have some of these things or perhaps you have all of it and then some.  Regardless, perhaps now is the time to just take a moment to just get on your knees and pray.  Lord, you are gracious and almighty.  I am thankful for all you have given me.  Grant me your peace.

Jesus Christ is always our peace.  Today’s verses are about Moses and his sharing with Aaron a blessing to the people of Israel.  As we look over this, one must ask a question.  If I am blessed with this, what would it look like?  Amidst all that is going on, I realize that it is now.  I have so much that He has given me.  Even as I miss out on so many things, I consider myself blessed, protected, smiled upon, shown grace, and favored.  But I still struggled.  Why did I not have peace?  I thought of the words of Jesus when He said, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28 NKJV)  Then I focused on the words of David “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.” (Psalm 23:4 NKJV)  These are prayers and words of reassurance that God is with us.  Then as I read today’s verses, I felt peace.  It occurred to me that whenever I am not focusing on God, worry, fear, and darkness follow.  It blinds us from that which is His doing, and that is why peace is so challenging to find.  But when our focus is on Him, calm and ease soon follow.  We see things clearly, and we respond with love, mercy, and gratefulness. His spirit flows freely both within and around us.  That is the blessing, and that is where peace is found.

We must never lose sight of the blessings God has given us.  Even if you face what will be a tough and challenging day, know that God has something special for you in the future.  David said, “This is the day the Lord has made.  We will rejoice and be glad in it.” (Psalm 118:24)  He has so much in store for us if we just rejoice in the many blessings He has already given us.  He’s certainly smiled on us, and even when we didn’t deserve it, He has shown us grace.  We are given His favor in so many ways.  Let us remember those things while looking to Christ to find our peace.  What burdens can you lay before Him today?  Where can you go to find time with God?  My prayer is that we clear our minds of troubles to find time for Jesus Christ, our peace.  Amen.

Thursday Devotional - How Persuasive are You?

I wouldn’t consider myself a very persuasive person. I do not like to sell anything. In fact, I remember being terrified to go door-to-door to sell Christmas ornaments for a school fundraiser in fourth grade! It was not a fond memory!!! I’m not in Sales for a reason!!!

When it comes to sharing the gospel and truth about God, we don’t need to focus on being persuasive. We certainly want to get our facts straight, but sharing the truth from our heart and from our personal experience is where we can focus. We aren’t responsible for the other person’s response, but for our obedience to share the truth.

The last few weeks we’ve seen Paul share the truth and his personal experience over and over. It angered some. Festus called him insane, but that didn’t stop him!

Acts 26:25-29           ²⁵ “I am not insane, most excellent Festus,” Paul replied. “What I am saying is true and reasonable. ²⁶ The king is familiar with these things, and I can speak freely to him. I am convinced that none of this has escaped his notice, because it was not done in a corner. ²⁷ King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know you do.”

²⁸ Then Agrippa said to Paul, “Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian?”

²⁹ Paul replied, “Short time or long—I pray to God that not only you but all who are listening to me today may become what I am, except for these chains.”

Paul wasn’t focused on being persuasive (although, I’m guessing he was a very persuasive person). He focused on obediently sharing the truth out of love for the listener, no matter what the response.

With whom do you and I need to lovingly share the truths of God, without worry about their response? The Holy Spirit convicts. We aren’t responsible for persuading.

Alice

The Art Of Listening

His disciples came and asked him, “Why do you use parables when you talk to the people?”

He replied, “You are permitted to understand the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven, but others are not.  To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be given, and they will have an abundance of knowledge. But for those who are not listening, even what little understanding they have will be taken away from them.  That is why I use these parables,

For they look, but they don’t really see.
    They hear, but they don’t really listen or understand.”  Matthew 13:10-13

 When do you speak?  When do you listen?  These have been questions in my mind for most of my life.  When I was young, I would run into the house library where my mom was on a conference call with her government colleagues.  Before I could say a word, she would raise up her pointer finger.  That meant for me not to talk and wait patiently until she was done.  Sometimes, it would only be for a moment.  Other times, it felt like hours.  Once, I actually fell asleep on the floor waiting for her to be done.  However on other occasions when I was fully alert, I would watch her negotiate and debate issues with her esteemed coworkers.  It was fascinating listening to her.  In the process as I grew older, it also taught me to be a rather good listener.  For example, I learned to pause before speaking whenever it seemed a person and me were both talking at the same time.  It would also make sense that you should let a person talk 75% of the time for greater understanding of what to say.  All of this is probably funny to many who know me because they will tell you I can talk with the best of people.  But it was only because I was always willing to listen first.  The same applies when it comes to God. 

We must always prepare ourselves to listen to what He has in store for us.  In today’s verses, Jesus shared with His disciples the purpose behind His parables.  It forced them to pay attention and hear what He had to say.  It also required greater thinking to thoroughly understand what He wanted them to learn.  It is great to talk with God about our troubles and shower Him with praises.  But every so often, I find myself doing all that and not really listening to what He wants me to do.  Perhaps I read something and might dismiss it or hear His prompting but fail to act.  Listening to God is the only way to acquire wisdom.  Prime example.  Have you ever tried to read a book with someone trying to talk to you?  It is far easier to reflect on what is read in a nice quiet place than amidst calamity about you.  More importantly, how much do you retain when uninterrupted versus interrupted?  The point is if you are busy talking to God or listening to other things, how can you truly hear Him?  And if you cannot hear Him, how can you acquire the wisdom He provides?  How can you pause and reflect to understand what it all means? 

God expects us to listen to Him.  Put another way and as today’s verses point out, we cannot be close to God unless we gain knowledge of who He is.  The importance of this lies in verses from the book of Proverbs, where it says:

Joyful is the person who finds wisdom,
    the one who gains understanding.
For wisdom is more profitable than silver,
    and her wages are better than gold.  Proverbs 3:13-14

Wisdom and understanding are the true currencies in the Kingdom of God.  As such, let us focus our attention spending time on what God is saying to us.  Do you dedicate time to ensure you are listening to Him?  What techniques allow you to best meditate on what God is telling you?  My prayer is that we utilize time and efforts toward hearing God through the art of listening.  Amen.

Our Majestic Lord

“O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is Your name

in all the earth, who have set Your glory above

the heavens! 

“Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants

You have ordained strength because of Your

enemies, that You may silence the enemy and

the avenger.

“When I consider Your heavens, the work of

Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which

You have ordained, what is man that You

are mindful of him, and the son of man that

You visit him? For You have made him a

little lower than the angels, and You have

crowned him with glory and honor.

“You have made him to have dominion

over the works of You hands; You have put

all things under his feet, all sheep and oxen—

even the beasts of the field, the birds of the

air, and the fish of the sea that pass through

the paths of the seas.

“O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is Your name

in all the earth!”

     Psalm 8 (NKJV)

This psalm extols the glory of the Lord in His creation.  When we ponder the vastness and intricacy of creation, we feel so small.  To think that God Almighty who made heaven and earth knows us by name is almost too much to comprehend.  We wonder, as the psalmist does, how can it be that our great God is mindful of us?  The fact that we bear His image, that He wants a personal relationship with each one, gives us even more reason to pause and marvel. Then we remember that His beloved Son came down and lived among us, and we realize that we are so very blessed.  Not only does He visit us but He gave His life for us at the cross so that we may have peace and joy and hope and life, now and forever if we trust in Him.

Take a moment to ponder these blessings with a grateful heart. Purpose every day to give God glory for His marvelous creation as you enjoy the majesty of the breaking dawn or the delicate beauty of a flower garden or the power of a great thunderstorm.  And when all the world seems in chaos and our lives have become topsy-turvy, it is a great comfort to remember that God Almighty is not only our Creator but our Sustainer.  He is still Sovereign and He cares for His children. So with all the hosts in heaven, let us sing His praises for His name is excellent in all the earth!

https://www.gettymusic.com/howmajestic

Thursday Devotional - Smart, yet Insane?

Have you ever been told it is insane to believe in Jesus as your Savior?

You may have heard someone say that faith is for the weak and unintelligent. It isn’t, but it is certainly for the humble. Prideful and arrogant people don’t want to admit they are nothing without God.

As Paul was speaking to all the educated and powerful people in Jerusalem and Caesarea, they recognized his great learning and intelligence. It confused especially Festus, though. Paul’s humility and selflessness, because of his faith in God, was “abnormal” for someone of his intelligence.

Acts 26:20-25 ²⁰ First to those in Damascus, then to those in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and then to the Gentiles, I [Paul] preached that they should repent and turn to God and demonstrate their repentance by their deeds. ²¹ That is why some Jews seized me in the temple courts and tried to kill me. ²² But God has helped me to this very day; so I stand here and testify to small and great alike. I am saying nothing beyond what the prophets and Moses said would happen— ²³ that the Messiah would suffer and, as the first to rise from the dead, would bring the message of light to his own people and to the Gentiles.”

²⁴ At this point Festus interrupted Paul’s defense. “You are out of your mind, Paul!” he shouted. “Your great learning is driving you insane.”

²⁵ “I am not insane, most excellent Festus,” Paul replied. “What I am saying is true and reasonable.

Do people see your faith as “abnormal” for someone who is intelligent? My sister was once asked how she could be so smart and yet believe in God.

Anyone can be knowledgeable, but a truly wise person is fully surrendered and dependent on God, their Creator and Sustainer! It isn’t insane. As Paul states, it’s “true and reasonable!”

Alice

Turn On The Switch

“And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’  For a while he refused, but afterward he said to himself, ‘Though I neither fear God nor respect man, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will give her justice, so that she will not beat me down by her continual coming.’”  And the Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge says.  And will not God give justice to his elect, who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over them?”  Luke 18:3-7 

There was a book that I often refer to called Switch.  It focuses on how to create change when change is hard.  It speaks of the dynamic of three key elements.  There is the rider, the elephant, and the path.  The rider represents our rational side of things.  The elephant represents the emotional side, and the path speaks about the environmental factors.  The goal is to ‘instruct’ the rider, ‘motivate’ the elephant, and ‘shape’ the path.  I will put it into current relevant context.  When we look at what has been happening over the George Floyd incident, all three dynamics are in play.  First, there is the rider.  The rider sees the video, and thinks, “Who in their right mind lays on someone for over 8 minutes to arrest a person?  That is ridiculously wrong!”  Now, there is the elephant, who reacts, “They are killing him!  We have to do something!!!”  Notice the difference between the two?  The path becomes movement toward change.  As we have seen, there were many pathways chosen.  Some were lawless and destructive such as rioting and looting.  Others chose the lengthy processes of pushing for legislation and ideas such as police reform.  Then there were the marches and peaceful protests.  These have proven to be the most impactful because it not only caused less damage but placed great pressure on others to act because of the sheer momentum of people that joined the cause.  That has become the chosen ‘path.’  Having said all this, I began to wonder.  Why is all of this happening now, and where is God in all of this? 

God is a lever for change when the time suits His will.  Police brutality has been happening for decades, but no one acted on it.  Why?  It reminds me of the story of Moses in his talk with God, and God saying, “I have certainly seen the oppression of my people in Egypt. I have heard their cries of distress because of their harsh slave drivers. Yes, I am aware of their suffering.” (Exodus 3:7)  Getting back to the ‘Switch’ model, there was no motivation to change policing in most people’s eyes (an elephant problem), and others had no vision for what changes were needed (a rider problem).  The sadness of this all is that it took something so heinous and obvious that people could neither ignore the vision (all are created equal – a rider solution) nor sit idle and accept it (need to right the wrong – an elephant solution).  This bring us to where God’s plan comes in.  What does God’s path look like?  To be able to understand it, we must first trust in God to guide us for as Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.”  Next, we are to pray continually for our journey and path to be taken. 1 Thessalonians 5:16:18 says, “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”  Finally, we must act with the love of God.  Today’s verses are about action.  Whether it be through marches, financial support, volunteering, or other way of supporting the cause, we are to be as persistent as the widow.  No man can withstand the will of God if He is with us.  This is how God’s will is done. 

God’s work requires many elements to make change for His Kingdom and our lives.  It requires wisdom to see His vision, the strength to love to move mountains, and submitting to guide us toward His will being done.  Many will disagree that God does not need us to make societal change.  However, if that were true why did He use Moses?  Wouldn’t Goliath have been slain without David?  Would we need Jesus to act on our behalf to free us from the bondage of sin?  Jesus understood the power of action stating: 

“Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink?  Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ 

“And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!” Matthew 25:37-40 

Let us move boldly and relentlessly to achieve that which God would want for all of us.  Where is your vision to change lacking?  What is your heart prompting you to change?  My prayer is we lean on God as listed earlier in Proverbs, and simply turn on the ‘Switch.’  Amen. 

The Day After

Friday, I took the opportunity to celebrate Juneteenth offered by Thomson Reuters. It's not a holiday celebrated around me, so I took some time to reflect on how it impacts me, and what I learn from it. I blogged on my personal blog, and shared how it breaks my heart, how I see that I need to speak to the problem, and live differently. I had to confess a very incomplete sense of what it is like for others, others of color, others of all sorts of differences, actually, to grow up in and live daily in this country.

I get a wide variety of traffic on my blog, but that day I had nearly no traffic at all. It was oddly surreal, as if the silence belied an unseen peril. I suppose that's the real danger with all that has gone on recently, the silence that follows. We don't know what to do with it, how to live differently, how to address the deep issues effectively. There is this struggle to overcome hopelessness and futility, but it's all part of the illusion. How can we, as disciples of Jesus, the Savior of the world, be without hope?

Something I called out in my blog entry from Friday was the demonic aspect of the racial divisions in this country. There is a heritage of this demonic evil pervasive in people claiming Jesus as their Savior. If you are interested in what I mean by that, you can check out the entry at Wordpress. I want to move passed what said there to an application from Hebrews 13.

In Hebrews 13, the writer switches his style from this meticulous classical argument structure to a staccato list of things to do. It's kind of abrupt, but that's probably why the chapter break was chosen to be where it is. But right out of the chute, he lists the following cohortatives:

Let love of the brethren continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it. Remember the prisoners, as though in prison with them, and those who are ill-treated, since you yourselves also are in the body. (Hebrews 13:1-3 NASB)

It's pretty simple, right? Love our fellow disciples, show hospitality for strangers, and identify with prisoners. But think about it, isn't this exactly what's been missing? Actually, that's generalizing where specifics demonstrate that these qualities are happening across the globe: People are demonstrating cross-racial love for each other, often in terms of welcoming racially diverse people into their communities, and the identifying with the oppressed has erupted in other countries, as well as here in the US.

These three things, love, hospitality, and remembering, do not solve the problem for an entire nation. But, they do for us, as people, as disciples, as collections of disciples, and communities of disciples. These three things are a great place to start for us. If, like me, you are part of those who didn't grow up as a person of color, then this is a great way to bridge the divide and reach out to others, different, yet so like us. If you are a person of color, this might be a great way to experience healing and acceptance. All three require vulnerability and trust, two things that are so difficult to choose when the pain and shame is deep. 

We miss opportunities to entertain those celestial messengers of our King when we choose to be vulnerable and trust others. We deny our own bodily identity with the oppressed when we refuse to be vulnerable and trust our Father in Heaven. We rebel against our Savior and King when we choose not to love our fellow disciples, regardless of race, or other differences. What excuse is valid to rebel against our Creator? What could possibly excuse our refusal to be vulnerable and our distrust of our King? 

So, let us seek ways to show our love for our fellow disciples. Let us welcome others, regardless of race, creed, or "orientation" into our lives. Let us identify with those oppressed as ones oppressed with them, because, in a sense, when they are, we truly are as well. And not to identify with the oppressed to deny our Savior and His path laid out for us by His life.

Scripture quotations taken from the NASB. Copyright by The Lockman Foundation