Thursday Devotional - All-Knowing God and Confused Job (8/1/24)

Pranks are done on enemies and friends. Sometimes it is hard to tell whether a prank was intended to be mean or funny. My Mom was re-telling a prank some fellow campers played on her when she was a kid (putting sand in her sleeping bag). She first thought it was kids being mean, but later realized they were teasing her as a friend.

God doesn’t play pranks. However, sometimes what we experience in life is hard to understand. It may seem like He is treating us more like an enemy than a friend. It may seem like He doesn’t care or that He is angry with us, but it usually is for a much bigger purpose. We often see and live short-sighted. 

As wise as Job was, he was still perplexed by his tragic life circumstances and physical torment. He felt like God was treating him more like an enemy than a friend. He took these complaints and questions directly to God.

Job 7:7, 11-16, 19-21  Remember, O God, that my life is but a breath;
    my eyes will never see happiness again.

¹¹ “Therefore I will not keep silent;
    I will speak out in the anguish of my spirit,
    I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
¹² Am I the sea, or the monster of the deep,
    that you put me under guard?
¹³ When I think my bed will comfort me
    and my couch will ease my complaint,
¹⁴ even then you frighten me with dreams
    and terrify me with visions,
¹⁵ so that I prefer strangling and death,
    rather than this body of mine.
¹⁶ I despise my life; I would not live forever.
    Let me alone; my days have no meaning…

¹⁹ Will you never look away from me,
    or let me alone even for an instant?
²⁰ If I have sinned, what have I done to you,
    you who see everything we do?
Why have you made me your target?
    Have I become a burden to you?
²¹ Why do you not pardon my offenses
    and forgive my sins?
For I will soon lie down in the dust;
    you will search for me, but I will be no more.”

Job was extremely confused and asked God about it. Our All-knowing God can handle our honest complaints, questions, and confusion. He will provide His answers in His time, just as He did for Job (at the end of the book in chapters 38-42).

We may wonder if God is listening, what good He could possibly bring from a terrible situation or why He doesn’t step in and address evil. The next time you and I are confused, let’s respectfully take our questions to God. We can look to the All-knowing God and His Word for answers or direction in the waiting.

Thursday Devotional - All-Knowing God versus Ignorant Eliphaz (7/18/24)

Have you ever had a friend try to give you encouragement or helpful advice that was not helpful, encouraging or even true?

Job’s friends started out well. They compassionately sat with him for 7 days and watched his misery in silence. After Job’s lament in chapter 3, one of his friends tried to speak encouragement.

Job 4:1-9   Then Eliphaz the Temanite replied:

² “If someone ventures a word with you, will you be impatient?
    But who can keep from speaking?
³ Think how you have instructed many,
    how you have strengthened feeble hands.
⁴ Your words have supported those who stumbled;
    you have strengthened faltering knees.
⁵ But now trouble comes to you, and you are discouraged;
    it strikes you, and you are dismayed.
⁶ Should not your piety be your confidence
    and your blameless ways your hope?

⁷ “Consider now: Who, being innocent, has ever perished?
    Where were the upright ever destroyed?
⁸ As I have observed, those who plow evil
    and those who sow trouble reap it.
⁹ At the breath of God they perish;
    at the blast of his anger they are no more.

Eliphaz recognized Job’s wise instruction to others and his help to the weak. However, he was confused by Job’s discouragement over his tragic circumstances. He didn’t understand why Job didn’t “know” that evil comes to those who do evil and innocent people don’t suffer.

Eliphaz needed to stop after verse 4. He could highlight the righteous acts he had seen, but he wasn’t all-knowing like God and able to truly explain why Job was experiencing such horrendous loss and pain. He was completely ignorant of all that had transpired between God and Satan.

Reading this reminded me that less is often better, especially when it comes to words! I can speak true and sincere encouragement from what I have seen and not give advice or offer speculation on things I haven’t seen and don’t know. Whether it’s commenting on world events, giving encouragement or offering advice, let’s prayerfully speak.

 

Proverbs 17:27-28 The one who has knowledge uses words with restraint,
    and whoever has understanding is even-tempered.

²⁸ Even fools are thought wise if they keep silent,
    and discerning if they hold their tongues.

I don’t want to be an ignorant friend like Eliphaz, but wise and discerning with my words! May we point others to our All-knowing God for His truth rather than our tainted understanding!   

A Chosen Friend

 

I have loved you even as the Father has loved me. Remain in my love.  When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father’s commandments and remain in his love.  I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!  This is my commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you.  There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.  You are my friends if you do what I command.  I no longer call you slaves, because a master doesn’t confide in his slaves. Now you are my friends, since I have told you everything the Father told me.  You didn’t choose me. I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for, using my name.   John 15:9-16

My wife is my best friend.  We have lots of fun together.  We fight and argue.  We have had nights where I slept on the couch, and a few where she put me there.  Deservingly.  I will never forget how we started dating.  We worked together at Burger King, and she asked me out.  Well let me rephrase that.  She told me I was going to take her out for her birthday.  I do not remember having an option in the matter.  The funny thing was I had to cancel the date because I was forced to work that night.  She was so mad!  I promised to make it up to her and be her date at the company’s Christmas party.  That was December 23, 1983.  We dated off and on for twelve more years before we got married.  We have three children and soon to be nine grandchildren.  Our lives are filled with joy and lots of love.  I am forever grateful that she chose me to take her out, and happy she graciously accepted to be my wife.  But if you let her tell you, she will say she ‘let’ me marry her.  As the years have passed, I realize how special it was that she chose me.  It gave me context to understand how it is equally as special to know I did not just choose to be a follower of Christ.  He first chose me as He has chosen each of you.

We are all chosen by Christ as His friends.  In today’s verses, my initial inclination was to be drawn to the middle, where Jesus talked about the greatest love of one laying down their life for their friends.  Of course, this was a precursor to the crucifixion.  However, reading the whole paragraph delved into not only a much deeper love Jesus had for His disciples but also the love He wished for them to show each other and the world.  It was a selfless (lay down one’s life), submitting (do what I command), freeing (I no longer call you slaves), and trusting (a master doesn’t confide in his slaves) kind of love.  Reading these verses give us a clear indication of what a healthy and loving relationship is like.  But first, it requires a choice.  I never really caught onto the part about Jesus choosing the Apostles.  This is truly significant because remember in Mark 1:17, Mark 2:14, and John 1:39, 46, He asked them to ‘follow’ or ‘come.’  We often believe that we found God and are grateful we were given a new life to follow Him.  But the real prize is realizing that He chose us first!  This fact is amazing to me, and we know this to be true because David spoke of such saying:

You saw me before I was born.
    Every day of my life was recorded in your book.
Every moment was laid out
    before a single day had passed.

How precious are your thoughts about me, O God.
    They cannot be numbered!
I can’t even count them;
    they outnumber the grains of sand!
And when I wake up,
    you are still with me!  Psalm 139:16-18

We are never separated from the love of God if we choose to follow Him.  Last week, I spoke of how God delights in us.  Today, we are to rejoice in how God loves us.  It is complete and without fail.  I now understand how Israel Houghton wrote in song, “I am a friend of God.  He calls me friend.”  Jesus said it.  Before we said ‘yes’ to Him, He chose us!  Whenever you begin to doubt your place or situation, never forget this.  What in your friendship with God needs repair?  How can you befriend someone as Jesus befriended you?  My prayer is that we remember that we did not just choose God as our savior.  He chose us as a friend.  Amen.

A Friend Indeed

A friend loves at all times, And a brother is born for adversity.  Proverbs 17:17 (NKJV) 

Tuesday was a ‘Thank you, Jesus’ day.  This was not in the sense that everything went well.  It was more of a ‘why anything can’t go right’ kind of day.  My wife and I were at each other, and my daughter was having an emotional meltdown.  I was thrown off schedule at work handling situations, and the stress of the day took all the energy out of me.  So why would I thank God for a day like that?  It reminded me of an inspirational quote that I read the other day.  It says, “In prosperity, our friends know us; in adversity, we know our friends.” (John Churton Collins)  It was then that I thought of God and who He intentionally puts in our lives.  My wife who is such a blessing to me and my youngest daughter who I love dearly are the reasons I can move forward.  In the end, my wife and I began working things out together as we took on the greater challenge of our daughter’s issues.  My daughter told me how much she loved me, and hugged me to prove (Ok, I had to coax her, but she did it with a grin nonetheless).  It reminded me how to better deal with adversity because God mixed in all the right ingredients.  Thus, "Thank you, Jesus!" 

God puts us in adversity so we understand His presence in our lives.  How many of us truly learn how to embrace adversity?  More times than not, we are moaning and groaning from the struggle and difficulties that arise from it.  It’s been a long time since I had to fall on my knees beaten and broken to pray because as each adversity came, I fell sooner than the last.  Each time, there was someone God put in my life to teach me something or show me a different perspective.  It happens so often, most might think it is coincidental.  However, it's not.  It's intentional.  Those of us attune to God’s will know He plans it exactly so that we may gain wisdom for His glory and find true allies who are future brothers and sisters in Christ.  Additionally, you may be that ally God intentionally put in another's life to help them in their faith journey. 

Adversity is a reminder that we are reliant on an awesome and all-powerful God.  A woman reached out to me the other day to talk about how her husband said they were unequally yoked and what she should do.  I told her to talk with him, and have him discuss it with his pastor.  I knew the husband did not need her to change.  Instead, it was for him to be a godly man that she would indeed be submissive to.  I could say that because of the trials and adversity my wife and I have faced.  A friend loves at all times.  That is what God asks of us to all who we touch for if we do, we are protecting the brand of Christ.  Are you a true friend to God and others?  Do you embrace adversity as cursed struggle or blessed opportunity to learn God’s plan?  My prayer is that we are thankful for our adversity so that we may find a friend not only in God but also other brethren.  Amen.

Our Journey to Adoption, Part XIII - Name Change

Sarah’s birth name was Serenity. When we first met James and “Serenity,” James couldn’t say Serenity so he called her Sissy. We used that name for her, too, especially after they moved in permanently with us. As we met with our adoption worker, she talked to us about possibly changing Serenity’s name. I was concerned about the affect it would have on the kids, but our worker reassured us and encouraged us to change it to something that would fit with the rest of our family names. Plus, since the kids were young enough, they would adjust quickly. The short amount of adjustment “pains” now would save years of questions she might get down the road.

After using the name Sissy all summer, we finally got word we could start talking to the kids about their upcoming name changes and what that would mean. I was nervous to have the first conversation, but James didn’t blink an eye! In fact, that night at bedtime he asked “so what’s my new name going to be again?” (He got a new middle and last name and “Sissy” got a new first and last name. We called her “Sissy Sarah” for the Fall and we gradually/naturally dropped the “Sissy” over time.)

Jesus gave the disciples a new name, too, to represent their change in status.

John 15:12-17 ¹² My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. ¹³ Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. ¹⁴ You are my friends if you do what I command. ¹⁵ I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. ¹⁶ You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. ¹⁷ This is my command: Love each other.

Has Jesus given you a new name to better represent how you fit into His family? What does Jesus call you and me? Are we His seekers, His followers, His servants, or His friends? His friends know his business, know His expectations, know where He is working and readily join in His cause. We can call Jesus our friend, but can He call us His friend? Do you and I know His Word and His commands and His character well enough to be able to be called His friend? If so, like the disciples, you and I will bear fruit that will last!

Alice