Nothing Too Hard

"Ah, Lord God!  Behold, You have made

the heavens and the earth by Your

great power and outstretched arm.

There is nothing too hard for You."

     Jeremiah 32:17 (NKJV)

It's good for us to remember that whatever we're facing, nothing is too hard for God.  No problem is too big for Him, no situation too bleak, no need that He can't fulfill.

For me, it helps to remind myself that even all the small things are not outside of God's reach.  Last evening, I was feeling vexed because of a number of small annoyances and frustrations this week that just would not go away.  Then as I sat down to eat supper, I looked up and saw the beautiful sunset out my windows.  I stopped and just gazed at God's glory displayed in the rosy sky and the breathtaking cloud patterns.  That helped to put things in perspective.  I saw God manifested in the glorious sunset, reassuring me of His presence with me and in my life. 

When I start to feel like I'm getting caught up in the frenzy of this world, when my peace is fleeting because of the strife in our society, it helps to focus on God's creation.  The weather, nature around me, sunrises and sunsets, are reminders of God's sovereignty.  God is still on His throne and all is well with my soul.

My prayer is that you too will be reminded of God's glory through His creation and be reassured that nothing is too hard for Him to handle. 

Thursday Devotional - Upholding Oaths

Making decisions based on bad information or wrong assumptions can lead to big mistakes. It certainly did for Joshua, as we saw last week. However, what are we to do when we realize it after the fact? We aren’t to go back on our word, or sin again to try to fix it. We may have to live with the consequences.

After Joshua made a mistake by making a treaty with the Gibeonites, as we saw last week, he didn’t try to undo the treaty after he realized his mistake.

Joshua 9:16-21        Three days after they made the treaty with the Gibeonites, the Israelites heard that they were neighbors, living near them. ¹⁷ So the Israelites set out and on the third day came to their cities: Gibeon, Kephirah, Beeroth and Kiriath Jearim. ¹⁸ But the Israelites did not attack them, because the leaders of the assembly had sworn an oath to them by the Lord, the God of Israel.

The whole assembly grumbled against the leaders, ¹⁹ but all the leaders answered, “We have given them our oath by the Lord, the God of Israel, and we cannot touch them now. ²⁰ This is what we will do to them: We will let them live, so that God’s wrath will not fall on us for breaking the oath we swore to them.” ²¹ They continued, “Let them live, but let them be woodcutters and water carriers in the service of the whole assembly.” So the leaders’ promise to them was kept.

Even though the Gibeonites had been deceptive, it didn’t negate God’s expectation that Joshua and the Israelite leaders uphold their oath (which God confirms in Joshua 10 and II Samuel 21).

What about your and my unconditional oaths and promises? Whether they seem little (like promising to take a kid to a park) or big (like a marriage vow) or a typical contract with a customer (that doesn’t have a conditional clause), we’re to keep our promises. How well are you and I keeping our word? Is there something we said with which we still need to follow through or uphold, even if the other party did wrong?

Next week we’ll see how God is ready and willing to help us uphold our unconditional oaths, move forward in the midst of consequences from previous mistakes, and make the next right step.

Alice

Listen, Learn, And Love

In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:

Who, being in very nature God,
    did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
rather, he made himself nothing
    by taking the very nature of a servant,
    being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man,
    he humbled himself
    by becoming obedient to death—
        even death on a cross!

Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
    and gave him the name that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
    in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,
    to the glory of God the Father.  Philippians 2:5-11

I was listening to a lady speaking about the challenges of being a woman in a workplace.  It came to a very interesting part that struck a chord in me.  She said that as a Christian black woman, people of the LGBT community would not approach her.  I let that thought marinate for a bit, and it occurred to me why that was.  You see, I too am with my own bias, and as a Christian, we can have such a strong response toward sin that it often can push away others.  Some of those are the very people that need Jesus more than we realize.  So how can I reach them?  First, I need to acknowledge that I too am flawed.  Then before I jump on my pedestal, my built-in guard rail of humility must remind me that at best I am not better than those around me.  Finally, I must pray my actions focus on opening my heart and mind to whatever is on their mind.  No judgment.  Just listen, learn, and love.

As Christians, we always must remind ourselves of the example Christ set for us to be toward non-believers.  Today’s verses are a reminder of the mindset of Christ, which set Him up to be glorified above all others.  I think of the calling of Matthew by Jesus himself as an example.  Matthew had a banquet for Jesus where many of his fellow tax collector friends came to ‘hang out’ with the Messiah.  Luke 5:30 says, “But the Pharisees and their teachers of religious law complained bitterly to Jesus’ disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with such scum?””  Why were they complaining?  How often are we judging others because they are not ‘like us Christians?’  Do we look down on them with disdain seeing those who do not follow Christ as unruly sinful creatures? “Jesus answered them, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do.” (Luke 5:31) It is highly likely that those Jesus puts in our lives are just like Matthew; lowly and not like ourselves.  Thus, we represent hope, joy, love, and acceptance  to those distant from God and in many ways need someone.  You know.  Distant like the person I was when He found me (a young man who never thought he was worthy of God’s grace).  Or maybe that same person when He found you (insert your story here).  God opened His arms, and asked us to come as we are.  He neither judged our past nor said we did not make the grade.  He said as Jesus said to Matthew, “Follow me.” (see Luke 5:27)  He focuses on the future as if to say, “Together, we’ll figure this out.”

Jesus Christ's love overcomes all barriers.  None of us are exactly where God wants us, but we have come a long way.  The journey is filled with detours and unexpected changes in our own plan, but we must always trust His plan for us.  Some of those very detours are people who we ordinarily see little in common with.  If we judge others by their faith, orientation, political affiliation, gender, we have closed ourselves to becoming that which Jesus so clearly showed to be wrong.  This is not to say He changes His standard.  What it does say is He transforms once we have accepted Him as Lord.  Isn’t that what we would want for all those who do not believe in Him?  How can we better display God’s heart and less His judgment?  My prayer is that when speaking with non-believers, we display the mindset of Jesus, and listen, learn, and love.  Amen.

Enemies

Have you ever had someone in your life that simply was not easy to love?  Maybe they did something horrible to you.  You even considered them an enemy because they hurt you or someone you love. 

Matthew 5:43

You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’  

Matthew 22:37-39

Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’

Loving your neighbor who you like is easy.  So, when we are told to love our neighbor as ourselves, it doesn’t seem so hard.

Matthew 5:44

I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.

This gets to be harder and takes more effort from us to accomplish.  So why should we love our enemies? 

Matthew 5:46

If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?

Luke 6:35a

But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back.

But why?  What’s in it for me?

Luke 6:35b

Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked.

We are told to be children of God, we must love even those that we classify as enemies.  Imagine if God considered us enemies because we did something that hurt him.

Luke 6:36

Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.