The Meaning of a Name

Philippians 2:9-11

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.

Often we don’t take the time to think about the value that a name holds.  Jesus was given a name that is above every name!  He was given a name was meant for all to bow down before him and praise him.  No other name will ever be held higher than that of our Lord, Jesus Christ.

When we were expecting our son, we chose the name Jonathan.  Jonathan was David’s best friend in the Bible.  The name means Yahweh has given.  Some dictionaries say that it means gift from God.  We selected this name carefully.  We had lost one baby before and knew that he may be our only child so it was with great thought that his name was selected. 

I encourage you to take a few minutes today to reflect upon what the name of Jesus means to you. 

To Varying Degrees

18 “Son of man, tremble as you eat your food, and shudder in fear as you drink your water.  Ezekiel 12

I love reading the Amplified translation of the Bible.  It digs in to the words that are used and tries to get close to the original language's meaning for words that may have changed over time.   In a way, it gives the "Eskimo snow" approach to the words in the Bible.

Take a look at the word "Tremble" above.  Ezekiel is being called to tremble before God.  Exercise time!  Tremble in your seat.  Go ahead, I won't watch.  Now, another word for tremble is to shake.  Go ahead and shake now.  The word used above though is the same word that's used in another place in the Bible to describe a quake - as in, an earthquake.

Now, "tremble" as though you're in an earthquake.

Enough of the silliness.  If you did the three exercises, you not only probably chuckled at yourself, but you also noticed that there's a wide difference in severity of your movements.  Ezekiel is being to told to tremble before God, in awe of his power and might.  Tremble as though he's in an earthquake!  Added bonus for the exercise, tremble as though you're in an earthquake during your lunch and see how much you're able to eat.  Good luck!

God sometimes uses little words for what he asks of us, but he wants big motions.  We are called to "tremble" before God.  We are also called to love God.  Is your love more like the trembling in the first example, or are you loving God like you're trembling in an earthquake?

Thurs Devo: The Holy Spirit before & after prayer

I’m usually very hesitant and don’t often post comments or responses on our company website, but Tuesday’s “Poll of the Week” caught my attention. I knew the question targeted innovation, but I thought one of my situations tied in and could also be used to give glory to God.

Here’s the Innovation Network question of the week and my response:

"What is something you've done that people said you couldn't do?"

“I was told I could not do several different things that eventually did happen. One was during my senior year in college when I still needed to complete an accounting internship. I was told I would not be able to get a real hands-on internship like I wanted, especially if I only had 15 hours a week of availability. I could work in the accounting firm where most of my predecessors interned. However, in talking to some of them, they said they just learned how to copy source documents.

I prayed about what to do and reiterated to my advisor that I wanted an internship where I could gain experience actually preparing tax returns. In God’s perfect timing, just before the second semester started, my advisor called me about a 15 hour a week internship at Fifth Third Bank, in their trust tax department preparing Federal 1040’s and 1041’s! It was perfect and probably led to my job at Deloitte after graduation!

Prayer, persistence and patience do work together to make the impossible, possible.”

After posting my response on Tuesday, I later remembered my short prayer that morning for boldness.  I don’t usually struggle to know what to pray about, but that morning I had. So, I was overwhelmed with amazement at the Holy Spirit’s work to guide me in what to pray and then to prompt me to act in answer to that prayer. I didn’t recognize all His work until well after the fact!!! The Holy Spirit was working before and after my prayer!

Romans 8:26        ²⁶ In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.

Yet again, I had experienced this promise fulfilled!

Ephesians 3:14-21       ¹⁴ For this reason I kneel before the Father, ¹⁵ from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. ¹⁶ I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, ¹⁷ so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, ¹⁸ may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, ¹⁹ and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

²⁰ Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, ²¹ to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

Alice

Your Servant is Listening

So the Lord called a third time, and once more Samuel got up and went to Eli. “Here I am. Did you call me?”

Then Eli realized it was the Lord who was calling the boy. So he said to Samuel, “Go and lie down again, and if someone calls again, say, ‘Speak, Lord, your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went back to bed.

And the Lord came and called as before, “Samuel! Samuel!”

And Samuel replied, “Speak, your servant is listening.”  1 Samuel 3:8-10

We live in a world that is fast paced and ever changing. We are pushed to do more with less, and situations force us to give them our entire attention. With all that goes about me, I find it difficult at times to not only speak to God but also and more importantly to hear Him. Now I realize that God does not speak to me all of the time, and there may be some of you out there who may have never heard God speak at all. But He does speak, and if you are in tune to Him, He speaks a lot! But how can one hear God when all about them is going on? For me, I have to find a moment where there is utter and complete silence. I have to be careful the voice I hear is not the one in my head. You know that voice. The same voice that tells you to eat a bunch of Doritos even if you know they are not good for you. God’s voice is distinct, and is the voice of love, guidance, and discipline. But how are we to know when God is speaking to us?

We will hear God speak to us only if we are willing to receive Him. This story of Samuel is one of my favorites for we all at times wonder what voice we are hearing is. What Eli, Samuel’s Dad, said should not be lost in understanding these verses. How often have we tried to mute out God’s voice saying to ourselves, “I know what is best for me,” or, “I do not wish to hear you?” If we were to follow what Eli said to his son answering, “Speak, Lord, your servant is listening,” God will speak clearly to us. Sometimes, He might say “Don’t worry about the obstacles you see in front of you. Trust in me. I am with you!” Other times, He will say, “This is wrong, and you know it.” Just like preparation is the key to success, we too must prepare our hearts and minds to receive God’s word in both writing and thought. Then, you will hear God’s voice in situations where you have doubt, and then see His awesome power create changes in your life.

We must always be receptive to the voice of God. With the many distractions the world places in our way, we must be vigilant in ensuring we do what is necessary to connect with Him. So if you feel you need to hear from God, take a walk by yourself. Go to a quiet place in your house. And yes, even take a long drive if necessary. What is God calling you to do today? How will ensure you are receptive to God’s voice? My prayer is that when God speaks, we like Samuel are willing to answer, “Speak, your servant is listening.” Amen.

Tues Devo: It matters

1 Corinthians 3:11-17 “For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each man’s work will become evident; for the day will show it because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each man’s work. If any man’s work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward. If any man’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire. Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If any man destroys the temple of God, God will destroy him, for the temple of God is holy, and that is what you are.”(NASB)

Hello,

One of the prevailing thoughts of people today is “what does it matter anyways?” or “no one cares”. Well, as a believer in Christ, things do matter! We are told in scripture that our works will be evaluated. It is not about if the works will get us to heaven, scripture is clear on that, but those works we do as a Christian are evaluated for rewards. I like how after Paul brings this up, he shifts the timetable, and discusses now – not just later. A reminder that we are the temple of the God, the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit. Our evaluation on works is not just something that happens later, but the things we do matter for now as well – with our bodies as the temple of God.

So, next time you catch yourself thinking “eh, doesn’t mater….” Stop for just a moment and evaluate if perhaps it really does matter.

Have a blessed day,

Will Hill

Do Not Worry

Matthew 6:25-34

 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?  Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?  Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin.  Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.  If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith?  So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’  For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.  But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.  Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

This was the base of the message at my church yesterday.  It was what the message was as well for me to teach during Children’s Church.  I found it rather fitting for a number of reasons yesterday.  First of all, it was a crazy weekend for me full of stress and worry.  We had my two of my nephews and my niece with us, in addition to our own 2 year old.  On Saturday, my neighbor’s house caught on fire.  Thankfully no one was hurt.  We were not home at the time and for that I am also thankful! 

So to get to church yesterday and hear these verse then go and teach on them, I had to stop and realize how much I had been worrying needlessly.  God always provides!  He even provides for the birds.  I loved this part of it when I was teaching as the kids got to color a picture of baby birds being feed by their mommy.  I was able to show the kids a picture of a baby bird that landed in our driveway just two weeks ago and was not able to fly.  We watched as the mom bird brought the baby food.  We ended up moving it to a safer place nearby and continued to watch as  the mom kept taking care of it.  Three days later we got to see it fly for the first time. 

God cares for us the same way.  We may fall from our nest and be unable to fly back but he does not leave us there alone and hungry.  He protects us and feeds us while we learn how to fly again.  We have no reason to worry as it will not add any time to our lives. 

Stop today to think about what it is that you worry about and give that worry to God.  He will take care of you!

Thurs Devo: Free Atonement

From last week, do you remember what God told Moses after the Israelites blamed Moses and Aaron for killing Korah?

Numbers 16:44-45   ⁴⁴ and the Lord said to Moses, ⁴⁵ “Get away from this assembly so I can put an end to them at once.” And they fell facedown.

Moses and Aaron responded with humility, reverence for God and compassion for the Israelites. Even though the Israelites deserved God’s wrath, Moses and Aaron didn’t say “Yeah, God, you get them! We’ve had enough!” Instead, look what they courageously and selflessly did!!!

Numbers 16:46-50   ⁴⁶ Then Moses said to Aaron, “Take your censer and put incense in it, along with burning coals from the altar, and hurry to the assembly to make atonement for them. Wrath has come out from the Lord; the plague has started.” ⁴⁷ So Aaron did as Moses said, and ran into the midst of the assembly. The plague had already started among the people, but Aaron offered the incense and made atonement for them. ⁴⁸ He stood between the living and the dead, and the plague stopped. ⁴⁹ But 14,700 people died from the plague, in addition to those who had died because of Korah. ⁵⁰ Then Aaron returned to Moses at the entrance to the tent of meeting, for the plague had stopped.

Aaron made atonement [reparation for a sin; reconciliation between God and people] for the Israelites who had personally sinned against him. What a fore-shadow of what Christ perfectly did for all of us, once and for all! We don’t earn Christ’s atonement, just like the Israelites didn’t earn Aaron’s atonement. It was costly to God and Jesus, but free to us!

Romans 3:23-26      ²³ for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, ²⁴ and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. ²⁵ God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— ²⁶ he did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.

By faith, we accept Christ’s atonement on our behalf! Then, we can enjoy reconciliation with God!

Do you and I truly realize that we don’t deserve Christ’s sacrifice of atonement, we can’t earn it, but we can fully receive it by faith?

How will you and I appreciate the free atonement offered to us through Jesus Christ?

Alice

Full Confidence

We think you ought to know, dear brothers and sisters, about the trouble we went through in the province of Asia. We were crushed and overwhelmed beyond our ability to endure, and we thought we would never live through it.  In fact, we expected to die. But as a result, we stopped relying on ourselves and learned to rely only on God, who raises the dead.  And he did rescue us from mortal danger, and he will rescue us again. We have placed our confidence in him, and he will continue to rescue us.  2 Corinthians 1:8-10

Lately, I feel like my mind is in a maze from which there is no escape.  There are worries about family and work.  Then there has been the massive uproar on spiritual topics ranging from same sex marriages to The Ten Commandments being removed from a courthouse.  All of this comes in the aftermath of a church shooting, and many have said that with all of this happening the end of days is near.  It has left my mind and soul tired and fatigued.  However as I was feeling those things, I was reminded of the words of Isaiah 40:30-31, which says, “Even youths grow tired and wear, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.  They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”  And as I read those words, my strength and resolve to move forward grew, and the wisdom to find a way through the maze returned.

In times of struggle and turmoil, we must always have full confidence in the Lord because He is without fail.  There are numerous quotes of scripture that we should remember when overcome with fear and anxiety of the happenings in the world.  We need to focus on confidence.  Confidence not in what we see, but rather confidence in what we know.  We know that God is control.  Jesus said, “Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows.  But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33b)  Proverbs 3:5 says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding.”  Finally, the Psalms of David remind us that “The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my savior; my God is my rock, in whom I find protection.  He is my shield, the power that saves me, and my place of safety.” (Psalm 18:2)

God is in always in control.  While much of what happens in the world may bring us grief and disappointment, we must continue to have surety in God to do all things.  So as many will worry about the laws of the land changing, we must remember the words of Jeremiah 31:33b, which says, “I will put my instructions deep within them, and I will write them on their hearts.  I will be their God, and they will be my people.”  Let the laws of the Lord we live by be forever in our hearts.  How confident are you in God’s righteousness?  What can you do to gain assurance in God’s all-knowing authority?  My prayer is that we, like Paul, have full confidence in God beyond our present circumstances.  Amen.

Tues Devo: He knows my name

Hello,

This last week my wife and I had our third child. As we made the final decision on the name, a nurse came in and asked if we had given her a name yet. My wife nodded at me and I was the first to say the name of the child out loud. It was an emotional thing – despite not being my first. You see, that was (still is…) my child. The name is not just words, but an identity and something that represents belonging. I was proud to say that was my child, honored to be the one to be the provider.

Then in that hospital room it struck me, God feels that way towards His children.  He knows our names. He is glad to provide and care for us. He is delighted that His children are His. He loves to call out to His children by name and guide them in a way that is best for them – even if(when) they cannot see it.

Exodus 33:17 “The Lord said to Moses, ‘I will also do this thing of which you have spoken; for you have found favor in My sight and I have known you by name.’” (NASB)

2 Timothy 2:19 “Nevertheless, the firm foundation of God stands, having this seal, “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, ‘Everyone who names the name of the Lord is to abstain from wickedness.’” (NASB)

Romans 8:16-17 “The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.” (NASB)

We are His children is we have accepted Jesus as our Savior – let God be the loving father who knows us and what is best for us!

Will Hill

The End is Nearing

2 Timothy 3

But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people.

They are the kind who worm their way into homes and gain control over gullible women, who are loaded down with sins and are swayed by all kinds of evil desires, always learning but never able to come to a knowledge of the truth. Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so also these teachers oppose the truth. They are men of depraved minds, who, as far as the faith is concerned, are rejected. But they will not get very far because, as in the case of those men, their folly will be clear to everyone.

You, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, persecutions, sufferings—what kinds of things happened to me in Antioch, Iconium and Lystra, the persecutions I endured. Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them. In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evildoers and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.  All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

I was trying to figure out exactly what I wanted to write for today when I saw the first few of these verses posted by a friend.  This devotion is not to be a controversial conversation.  Rather, I’m simply putting the scriptures out there for us to read.  Some are happy about the Supreme Court ruling, others are very distraught over it.  Today, my friends, co-workers, even loved ones that may read this, I simply want to point out that we should not be surprised by the things that are happening in this world.  This was all laid out in scripture of what was to come.  We will face persecution as a Christian.  2 Timothy 3 says it very clearly, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. 

So what are we to do?  We are to carry on.  Continue in what we believe and know from the Holy Scriptures.  We need to share this with others but it must be done in a loving manner. 

Today, I simply want to encourage you to let your faith shine in your life and love those that disagree with you.