Every Step I take

Psalm 121:7-8

The Lord will keep you from all harm—

    he will watch over your life;

the Lord will watch over your coming and going

    both now and forevermore.

We have all heard these verses before and sometimes hear them used to question God.  Why God did you not protect me from harm?  David wrote this from a way to direct and encourage us to repose ourselves and our confidence in God.  We are by faith to put ourselves under his protection and commit ourselves to his care.  This does not mean we will never face harm.  It’s more that in those times that we do, that we trust the Lord to take care of us. 

I think the entire Psalm 121 is a great Psalm to meditate on regularly.  Remind ourselves that the Lord is the Maker of Heaven and Earth and that He is watching over us.  He sees our every steps. 

Is every step you make something that you’d want the Lord to see?  We sure want His protection over every step so let’s make every step pleasing to Him.

Plant the Seed

4 and said to him, “Go throughout the city of Jerusalem and put a mark on the foreheads of those who grieve and lament over all the detestable things that are done in it.”  Ezekiel 9

It's more punishment from God (this group of people had a ton of problems), but this time there are some who are spared.  They are spared because they "grieve and lament over all the detestable things."

We all see sin - every day in fact.  What is your reaction to it?  Do you give it any thought, do you sigh and shake your head, or do you grieve and lament?  Do you pray for that person?

Everyone has an opinion about something and someone.  There will be people who sin right in front of you.  You can either roll your eyes and mutter that they're an idiot and wonder why they can't see the harm they're doing or you can grieve and lament for them and share your concern for their future.  

I've talked to people who say that we only need to "plant the seed" with non-believers.  I disagree.  I believe that we need to constantly demonstrate living a life for Christ and talking to those non-believers about Christ.  That seed needs cultivation.

“A farmer went out to sow his seed. 4 As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. 5 Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. 6 But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. 8 Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred,sixty or thirty times what was sown. 9 Whoever has ears, let them hear.”  Matthew 13

Thurs Devo: God, Honored as Holy

After the earth swallowed Korah, those with him and all his belongings, how would you expect the rest of the Israelites to react?

Number 16:34-40       ³⁴ At their cries, all the Israelites around them fled, shouting, “The earth is going to swallow us too!”

³⁵ And fire came out from the Lord and consumed the 250 men who were offering the incense.

³⁶ The Lord said to Moses, ³⁷ “Tell Eleazar son of Aaron, the priest, to remove the censers from the charred remains and scatter the coals some distance away, for the censers are holy— ³⁸ the censers of the men who sinned at the cost of their lives. Hammer the censers into sheets to overlay the altar, for they were presented before the Lord and have become holy. Let them be a sign to the Israelites.”

³⁹ So Eleazar the priest collected the bronze censers brought by those who had been burned to death, and he had them hammered out to overlay the altar, ⁴⁰ as the Lord directed him through Moses. This was to remind the Israelites that no one except a descendant of Aaron should come to burn incense before the Lord, or he would become like Korah and his followers.

I had a couple questions when studying this passage. First, why did the Israelites fear being swallowed? They had been warned to stay away from Korah, Dathan and Abiram and their tents. So, if they heeded the warning, why were they afraid? God can be trusted. He wouldn’t accidentally swallow more than He intended.

Second, why did God consider the censers holy, when they were last used by sinful, prideful, and rebellious individuals? In re-reading verse 38, God said they became holy because they were presented before Him. He declared them holy, in spite of the fact that they were presented in an unholy and disrespectful way.

Earlier, when Aaron’s sons approached the Lord in a disobedient way, Moses reminded Aaron of God’s previous words:

Leviticus 10:3           ³ Moses then said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord spoke of when he said:

“‘Among those who approach me
    I will be proved holy;
in the sight of all the people
    I will be honored.’”

We can either voluntarily honor God as holy, or He can gain honor in spite of us. I’d rather enjoy the blessings of honoring God voluntarily, wouldn’t you?

How might you and I be approaching God in a dishonoring way? How will you and I approach our Holy God this week in an honoring way instead?  

Alice

Follow the Path

So the Twelve called a meeting of all the believers. They said, “We apostles should spend our time teaching the word of God, not running a food program.  And so, brothers, select seven men who are well respected and are full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will give them this responsibility.  Then we apostles can spend our time in prayer and teaching the word.”

Everyone liked this idea, and they chose the following: Stephen (a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit), Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas of Antioch (an earlier convert to the Jewish faith).  Acts 6:2-5

Over the past couple of months, I have felt challenged in different ways.  In those challenges, it feels that another path is being opened, and I have begun to pray what that might mean for me in the future.  That makes me nervous as no one truly knows what the future has in store.  When dealing with such uncertainty, there are two things I have come to rely on.  First comes from Proverbs 3:5-6, which says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.”  The second, Philippians 4:13, says, “For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.”  These are powerful reminders for me that while I do not know what the future has in store, I should trust God fully for there is nothing that I cannot handle through Christ. 

We must always walk faithfully the  path that God has set before us.  Today’s verses focus on the story of Stephen, who was about to take on a far different path than what was supposedly set for him.  He was one of five given the task to run a food program.  That would seem uninspiring.  However, Stephen's path would lead him to perform miracles, be falsely arrested, be an unyielding testifier for Christ, and see God and Jesus in the heavens before being killed.  Now sure, we might look at it as, “Hey!  He got stoned to death, and that’s not good, right?”  But through simply choosing to follow his path, he did things that even most of the Apostles did not do and saw God and Jesus prior to going up to Heaven.  How many of you would make that trade (live an incredible God inspired life and seeing both God and Jesus near the end)?  Had he not been faithful and followed what was asked of Him, none of this would have happened.  The Book of Acts is full of stories where people made the choice to follow the path God had laid out for them, and from Peter to Paul to Cornelius and others, their lives were changed and blessed along with furthering God’s Kingdom. 

God has laid out our path to a greater understanding of His will for our lives.  We may not fully understand it and we may be hesitant to pursue it.  However if we fully trust in Him and faithfully walk it, we, like Stephen, will have a fully blessed life.  What path is God presenting you with?  How can you trust in Christ to courageously overcome your fear of pursuing it?  My prayer is that we trust in God and Jesus Christ, and then simply follow the path.  Amen.

Firm on a Foundation, Part 2

Matthew 7:1-5 “Do not judge so that you will not be judged. For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ and behold, the log is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.” (NASB)

1 Corinthians 5:9-13 “I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people; I did not at all mean with the immoral people of this world, or with the covetous and swindlers, or with idolaters, for then you would have to go out of the world. But actually, I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he is an immoral person, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a swindler—not even to eat with such a one. For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Do you not judge those who are within the church?  But those who are outside, God judges. Remove the wicked man from among yourselves.” (NASB)

Hello,

Last week I talked about the dangers of leaving the Biblical foundation for what is right/wrong. This week I want to extend that discussion a bit further to a common topic – judgment.

I believe we have a major definitional issue with the word judgment and how we use it (or in many cases how it is used towards us). There is a difference between making a judgment and making a statement.

The Bible warns us about judging others or pronouncing judgment many times – the verses from Matthew 7 above are perhaps the most well-known.

However, the Bible clearly states that we are to label sin for what it is – sin.

So, how are these different? Judgment involves the heart, a statement is an objective measurement against an agreed upon standard.

In Matthew 7, the warning about judging is clear – it will come back. However, what is often overlooked are the verses which follow in the same thought pattern. Notice that after we address the log in our eye – we are still to take the speck out of the brother’s eye?! – we are instructed to label things that are sin as sin, and address them. What we are to be careful is judging motive, intention etc – those things do not move towards removing sin. We are to address our sin issues, and then also address those of our brothers/sisters near us.

1 Corinthians 5 gives even more precision/clarity – God will judge those who do not claim Him…that time is coming! But those on the inside of the church who do claim God, we are to hold to the Biblical standard and not tolerate sin. We are to help one another break free of sinful addictions, and keep focused on doing what is honoring to God.

So – why does the world view things as judging, when we don’t feel we are judging? I believe it is because we make a statement that measures against the Bible as our standard…..but that standard is not accepted by others. When those we talk with do not have the same standard, that makes our statement appear to be judgmental.

I believe there are two challenges for us in this today:

1.      Call sin for what it is according to the Bible and deal with it, get rid of it. (Yes, we must read our Bibles regularly to stay in touch on this one – and also remember our motive for labeling sin and dealing with it is not out of pride, but out of love for what Jesus did on the cross)
2.           When you are discussing scenarios with those who may be non-believers, communicate the standard you are using (we cannot use any other standard – see last weeks devo to tie that together). This will add clarity, and provide an opening for a critical end of the conversation – who is God.

Have a blessed day,

Will Hill

The Father rejoices

Proverbs 23:22-25

Listen to your father, who gave you life,

and do not despise your mother when she is old.

Buy the truth and do not sell it—

wisdom, instruction and insight as well.

The father of a righteous child has great joy;

a man who fathers a wise son rejoices in him.

May your father and mother rejoice;

may she who gave you birth be joyful!

With Father’s Day coming up, I thought it would be nice to talk about Father’s today.  I didn’t always have the greatest relationship with my Dad, however I am grateful for the relationship we have today.  Throughout the Bible we see it said to listen to your parents.  This is a lesson that my husband and I are always working on with our 2 year old.  Lately, it’s actually been getting better. 

Yesterday I watched as my husband played on the floor with my son.  My son climbed up on Daddy, gave him a huge hug and told him that he loved him and that he was the best Daddy!  This just melted my heart.  It also got me thinking, how often do we sit with our Heavenly Father and tell him that we love him and that he is the best?

The father of a righteous child has great joy; a man who fathers a wise son rejoices in him.  Do we bring our Heavenly Father great joy because we are righteous?  Does he see us as wise?   Let’s make our Heavenly Father proud with the way that we live our lives each day.

A Devotion Two Weeks in the Making

This one is significantly longer than my normal fare.  Go grab something to drink and make yourself comfortable.

I don't have any verses this week.  There are times where God speaks to you through your studies, and there are times where he presses something on your heart with other means than the Bible.  This is one of those times for me.  So bear with me as I explain what's been going on with me the last few weeks.

Two weeks ago, I had a double-wedding weekend.  One wedding was for family and one was for a very dear friend of mine.  I can still very clearly recall the first time me and my friend went out by ourselves and got to know each other.  We went for ice cream and she very quickly told me about her faith in Jesus, the devotions she was working on, and that her favorite book in the bible was Romans.  Keep in mind, this was the FIRST time we had ever had a conversation with just the two of us.  She boldly wears her faith and shares it with everyone she interacts with.

Her wedding was beautiful, and the speeches by everyone at the reception had a common theme: the bride's faith.  Everyone talked about it, including in the best man speech.  I was incredibly moved by how much this woman is driven by and for Christ.  She's an inspiration to me, and I told her so when I was leaving the reception.  She was stunned and shocked and even said, "What? You?" when I first told her, but I explained it all as fast as I could and hugged her as we said our good byes.  She's on fire for Christ, and I want that fire, too.

I write these devotions and will occasionally talk of Christ with my Christian friends, but do I really go out of my shell and talk to strangers or people who are not Christian about Christ?  Not really.  That's what I told myself that I would start working on.  I was going to make myself get uncomfortable, I was going to do it!

And, like most New Year's resolutions, nothing changed.

Last Saturday, there was a sudden death in my family.  He was a dearly loved uncle and he will be sorely missed.  It hit me particularly hard because I have some great childhood memories of him.  He was Santa.  Seriously.  Our family personally knew Santa, and we've got the pictures and videos to prove it.  Really!  He'd make special appearances at parties throughout the year (not just at Christmas), and I remember once he showed up to a summer party in the red Santa suit with a sombrero.

My husband and I attended church on Sunday morning, and I was doing better.  I honestly can't remember the songs we sang in worship at the start of the service, but the lyrics struck me at the time and it suddenly hit me.  While I knew my uncle, I didn't know him that well.  I didn't know if he was a Christian even.  I never asked.  I felt shame for having never talked to him about this and I felt despair at not knowing.  I knew him as Santa!  Tons of people had been posting to Facebook after he died to share their pictures of him, and share their memories of him, but not one person (that I saw) had talked about his faith.  

It was then that I had my God-moment.  That little lightbulb directly from God telling me, "Live your life so that there isn't any question about your faith.  What will you be remembered for?  Make the first thing that people think of when you die be your love for Christ."

That was powerful.  Again, this was the start of service that this happened.  I prayed to God for help in doing this.  Help in making sure that people will see this first in my life.  Before the pastor went up for his sermon, they played this video.

Idol Worship - YouTube

Bam!  I felt smacked in the face by that video with what I had been thinking earlier.  Yes, this was precisely what I was looking for.  I had other things that, while they weren't my idols, people would surely think of first when they thought of me.  I knew it.  I had everything segmented into different aspects with my life, and I made sure that they didn't cross boundaries, so I never talked of Christ when I was in different situations.  I kept those separate.  I know then that I needed to make sure that people know I worship Christ.

The sermon continued that same thread.  Here's the sermon (it's a long one), but take a watch if you have the time.

Gospel Centered Worship

The sermon really drove home what I was thinking and praying about.  After that sermon, I knew this would be my devotion for the week, so it's been brewing in my mind for a long time.  I decided I'd survey my Facebook friends (thank you to those who participated) to see what the first thing was that they thought of when they thought of me.  I was humbled by some, laughed at others, and saw my flaws with a few.  However, the very first person that responded to my inquiry gave me exactly what I'm going to be working for.  They said they first thought of my "love for God."  That gave me affirmation that this is absolutely the direction I need to be going in for the devotion.  It's my goal now to change everyone else's thoughts so that they, too, think of that first.

Yesterday was the memorial service for my uncle, and still, this devotion is swirling about in my head the entire time.  I was talking with a family member prior to the service and it came up about what we wanted for our own funerals.  I told her that I wanted to be cremated and have no funeral.  I only wanted to have a get together somewhere with food, where people could talk and reminisce.  No service, no hymns, just a simple family gathering.  She told me that she originally thought she wanted Mo-Town music played, until her pastor told her that this would be the last time for her to give an impression on people and that the music should be hymns.  She's still undecided on Mo-Town vs. hymns, but I sat quietly, while still ruminating on the devotion (seriously, this theme has been stewing constantly in my brain).  I thought to myself, but if I'm going to be making my fire for Christ known to everyone, and everyone thinks, "There was a woman who lived for Christ," when I die, do I need hymns sung and a Christian service for a funeral?

No.  My life for Christ will be my legacy.  This will be what I live for, and what I die for.

I vow to make a change.  I vow to no longer stay silent.  I vow to not be politically correct when it comes to Christ.  I vow to show my fire and boldly wear my love for Christ like my friend does.

Thurs Devo: He Who Dies With the Most Toys Wins?

Have you seen that on a bumper sticker? I have. It didn’t have the question mark after it, either. I have also seen the opposite – “He Who Dies with the Most Toys Still Dies.” When I read that, it usually reminds me to focus on what really matters and not on temporal things or things of little eternal value.

I know we can get very attached to certain possessions and I’ve heard of people being buried with some of their prized possessions. Korah got buried with not just some, but ALL of his belongings!

Numbers 16:28-33   ²⁸ Then Moses said, “This is how you will know that the Lord has sent me to do all these things and that it was not my idea: ²⁹ If these men die a natural death and suffer the fate of all mankind, then the Lord has not sent me. ³⁰ But if the Lord brings about something totally new, and the earth opens its mouth and swallows them, with everything that belongs to them, and they go down alive into the realm of the dead, then you will know that these men have treated the Lord with contempt.”

³¹ As soon as he finished saying all this, the ground under them split apart ³² and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them and their households, and all those associated with Korah, together with their possessions. ³³ They went down alive into the realm of the dead, with everything they owned; the earth closed over them, and they perished and were gone from the community.

Wow! Quite drastic! Korah had been given opportunity to repent, but he chose to continue in his rebellion in despising God and rising up against Moses, God’s chosen leader.

What lessons have you and I learned the past few weeks from these devotionals on Korah?

I’ve been reminded how serious and destructive pride is.

I’ve also learned that even when someone else is completely in the wrong, I need to respond with humility, like Moses did.

God is to be consulted first and foremost before any reaction.

God is the ultimate Judge and will have the final say on who “wins.”

Alice

Giving All of Us

Then Samuel said to all the people of Israel, “If you want to return to the Lord with all your hearts, get rid of your foreign gods and your images of Ashtoreth. Turn your hearts to the Lord and obey him alone; then he will rescue you from the Philistines.”  So the Israelites got rid of their images of Baal and Ashtoreth and worshiped only the Lord.  1 Samuel 7:3-4

Do I serve God with my head or heart?  This is a constant in my mind because there are times that the head and heart are not on the same page.  For example when dealing with my own sin, it would appear that the head (i.e. reading God’s scripture and taking it to ‘heart’) should win the day.  Yet when dealing with others in their brokenness of their own sins, having a heart and being compassionate is the right thing to do.  I have found that I best serve God with my head as the guiding force but my heart as the driving force.  You see, we cannot serve God just one way or the other.  He wants every bit of us to serve Him.  Only then will we be able to have a growing Christian walk.

Serving God must be done fully and completely.  I was fascinated with the story of Samuel in doing this devotion not only for the verses above but also the build up to this moment.  Samuel was called on directly by God to serve, but first, the stage had to be set for God’s truth to be revealed through Samuel.  God allowed Israel to be defeated by the Philistines and lose the Ark of Covenant of the Lord in that battle.  If you do not understand the significance of this, imagine doing the thing that you do better than anything else, and on your best day, you still were not as good as someone else.  Pretty devastating!  However, God was just prepping the stage by later causing all kinds of grief and suffering for the Philistines while Samuel was being elevated to his leadership role.  Thus when Samuel spoke to Israel asking for them to give everything to God; hearts, turning away from false idols, and obeying God alone, they were ready to listen to everything he had to say, and the Israelites gave everything to God.  As such, the Philistines would attack yet again, but this time they were defeated as God was with the now faithful Israelites.

In our lives, we will have situations that may not go our way.  These are opportunities to pause and reflect on whether we are fully vested in the God we serve; mind, heart, and soul.  If we are, we know He is setting the stage for our future triumph as He is faithful and without fail.  Do not focus on those things you do not control or enemies who have seemingly incredible odds stacked in their favor.  Focus on being completely vested in an awesome and amazing God.  Are there parts of you that are not completely vested in what God wants for your life?  How can you respond to situations with both heart and mind toward God?  My prayer is that we are giving all of us to God today.  Amen. 

Tues Devo: Firm in a Foundation

Ephesians 6:10-18 “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having  shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints,” (NASB)

Hello, (***Note, the following is a little deeper and more interconnected than I normally do on a Tuesday Devo!)

There seems to be a pattern these days. We like to be agile and known as people who can adapt and flex to any situation. While that is great at the office and with crazy personal schedules, it isn’t a great fit with the beliefs of Christianity. We are to root ourselves in the truth of His word. Satan likes to change our focus when he can. Instead of focusing on the truth he gets us to look at the people around us (flesh and blood) – and as those people shift and move we can tend to shift and move with them. Pretty soon, we are no longer basing our beliefs in the unchanging foundation of God and His word, but rather on feelings related to falible humans. We do this tyring to be nice to people. A cause that feels noble, but if the root is niceness instead of hoilness we lose touch with what our foundation should be. We constantly battle trying to balance what Scripture says to our “new people and socially friendly” beleifs…that is tough to do…so we like to duck and hide anything close to controversial. The problem with that approach is that it is through some of the more challenging conversations that God’s truth shines through – causing us to miss the opportunity to share truth with many. A truth that at first some people see a portion of and see unfair – but as they engage in conversation provide the opportunity to see the entire picture and see that it is a truth based in love – the love of God.

Have a blessed day – and stay strong in your foundation of God’s truth.

Will Hill