Upright in heart

Psalm 32:11

Rejoice in the Lord and be glad, you righteous;
    sing, all you who are upright in heart!

I’m sure each and everyone one of us can think of a time when life was just full of stresses.  For me, this past week has been like that.  I was putting in extra hours at the beginning of the week to meet some deadlines, we had lots of things going in the evenings that still had to be taken care of like vet appointment, a CPR class that my husband had signed up for, and more. 

Top things off with my son complaining every day about having to go to day camp.  He kept saying he was being picked on and then yesterday some things happened and he ended up in some trouble. 

This just topped my stress levels off.  This morning, I sat down to read from my Bible and Psalm 32 was put before me.  It talks about David going through various things and the Lord protecting him.  Verse 11 is what really stood out to me, if we are upright in heart, we have reason to rejoice.  Even through all of the stresses of life, our God is always there, always giving us strength and protecting us. 

For that, today I will rejoice.  My prayer for you today is that even if you’ve been dealing with various stresses and trials, rejoice in the Lord as you are still upright in heart.

Thursday Devotional - Who Has Power and Control?

Last year Sarah enjoyed “riding” a tricycle at my parents’ house that had a long pole out the back. At 2, she felt independent steering and pedaling, all the while someone was giving her power from behind.

Like Sarah, Pilate thought he had power and control, but the only power and control he had was given to him by God.

John 19:5-11 ⁵ When Jesus came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe, Pilate said to them, “Here is the man!”

⁶ As soon as the chief priests and their officials saw him, they shouted, “Crucify! Crucify!”

But Pilate answered, “You take him and crucify him. As for me, I find no basis for a charge against him.”

⁷ The Jewish leaders insisted, “We have a law, and according to that law he must die, because he claimed to be the Son of God.”

⁸ When Pilate heard this, he was even more afraid, ⁹ and he went back inside the palace. “Where do you come from?” he asked Jesus, but Jesus gave him no answer. ¹⁰ “Do you refuse to speak to me?” Pilate said. “Don’t you realize I have power either to free you or to crucify you?”

¹¹ Jesus answered, “You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above. Therefore the one who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin.”

No one has power or control unless God allows it. Like Pilate, you and I might think we are in control, but God is the only Almighty One who has absolute and unlimited power over all.

And when things seem out of control, we can remember that God’s purposes will prevail in spite of the chaos and evil. What comfort does that give to you and me today?    

Alice

Tues Devo: Glory

John 17:1-5 “Jesus spoke these things; and lifting up His eyes to heaven, He said, “Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son, that the Son may glorify You, even as You gave Him authority over all flesh, that to all whom You have given Him, He may give eternal life. This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. I glorified You on the earth, having accomplished the work which You have given Me to do. Now, Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.” (NASB)

Hello,

As Jesus prepares to be betrayed and crucified, he spends some time with His disciples and begins to talk more directly and in less parables (we see this mentioned in the end of John 16:29 “His disciples said, ‘Lo, now You are speaking plainly and are not using figures of speech.”) This prayer starting in chapter 17 comes right on the heels of that comment. (*the prayer goes for the entire chapter)

What stood out to me in this prayer was the amount of times Jesus uses the word glorify. The word glorify means to cause to be or treat as more splendid than normally considered. It also means to praise or admire. Jesus asked that He Himself be glorified – a request that normally we would see as selfish and self-serving. But, He immediately puts the purpose behind it – so that the glory of the Son would reflect right back and bring glory to God the Father. Jesus looked at His role as being in a position to glorify and point to the Father. The accomplishment Jesus points to was not about Himself (despite being perfect) but was about doing what was laid out and instructed by the Father – this brought the Father glory.

I hope this is a challenge for each of us. How are we bringing the Father glory? Are we doing what is laid in front of us by Him? Is our glory found in Him getting glory?

Have a blessed day,

Will Hill

Victory

Picture it with me if you would, 300 kids, all jumping around and singing:

V-I-C V-I-C-T-O-R-Y V-I-C V-I-C-T-O-R-Y

When I think of the Bible saying that we are to become like children to enter the kingdom of God, this image that I experienced this last week is the perfect image.  Now you may be trying to figure out how a pep rally is the perfect image of becoming child like to enter the kingdom of God.

This past week I was able to use my volunteer hours to volunteer for my church’s VBS.  It was humbling to work with 300 kids that have such pure hearts and love the Lord.  Our theme for the week was Victory through Christ.  Victory in overcoming the tomb.  Victory in having the courage like David to fight the giants in our lives. 

But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.  1 Corinthians 15:57

Today, I want to have you think about how Christ has had victory in your life and I encourage you to get excited and praise him, like that of a child.  Be joyful, be excited.  Praise him and share that excitement with those around you.

Thursday Devotional - What is Truth?

If you had a private one-on-one meeting with Jesus what would you ask Him? What would you want explained or defined? I have several things I would want to know and understand.

Pilate had a private one-on-one meeting with Jesus and even asked Jesus an important theological question.

John 18:37-38         ³⁷ “You are a king, then!” said Pilate.

Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”

³⁸ “What is truth?” retorted Pilate. With this he went out again to the Jews gathered there and said, “I find no basis for a charge against him.

It appears Pilate was a relativist. Maybe it was because he constantly heard different people’s perspectives on all sorts of issues. However, he had an opportunity to hear straight from Jesus what truth is and passed it up! How sad and foolish.

What about you and me? We get inundated with news, people’s opinions, all kinds of statistics, and “new” research. What information is really true? Only God’s Word is 100% trustworthy. Are you like Pilate? Do you pass up the opportunity to hear truth directly from God? Do you spend more time watching and reading news articles than reading truth from God’s Word? If so, we’re just as foolish as Pilate.

Many of us chart our daily steps and hours of sleep. What if we charted the amount of time reading, studying and applying the Bible, versus time spent taking in information from the world? Truth is available to us! Let’s not foolishly pass it up.   

Alice

No Matter Your Title Or Clothes

Then they said to Him, “Who are You?” 

And Jesus said to them, “Just what I have been saying to you from the beginning. I have many things to say and to judge concerning you, but He who sent Me is true; and I speak to the world those things which I heard from Him.” 

They did not understand that He spoke to them of the Father. 

Then Jesus said to them, “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak these things. And He who sent Me is with Me. The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him.” As He spoke these words, many believed in Him. 

Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”  John 8:25-32 

I was in a discussion with a group of people that included a Jesuit priest.  The priest made a statement about being a Christian.  He said, “There’s no need to tell everyone how Christian you are.  Just act like one: love, forgive, be merciful, help the poor.  They’ll get it.”  Someone replied, “I agree with you father.  But it’s kind of funny that you said that with your collar and credentials.”  Having gone to Catholic school but not being a Catholic, I knew where the gentleman was going with his response.  “It’s easy to say that as a priest.  As for the rest of us, we will just go on with our lives, thank you very much.”  I just could not let that go.  So I chimed in saying, “Truth is truth no matter your title or clothes.”  When the multitudes chimed in agreement, I knew I hit the right cord, and the discussion had ended because even the gentleman opposing could not argue the point further. 

Following Christ's truth is an act.  Not a statement.  In today’s verses, Jesus tells a crowd who He is, and there is clearly a decent among the group if Jesus is or is not the Messiah.  Like in the aforementioned discussion with the priest, Jesus spoke truth of being the Messiah, and many believed.  However, many does not constitute as ‘most’ or ‘all,’ and thus, there were those who had other thoughts.  “It’s easy to say that, Jesus, but anyone can say they are the Messiah,” had to be the thoughts of the dissenting portion of the crowd.  Notice Jesus did not focus on the ones who had already dismissed Him.  He focused on the ones that understood the truth.  He thus solidified the relationship with them saying to abide in His word to become disciples and know He has liberated those who believe in Him from sin.  When you hear Jesus’ truth, one cannot respond just in word.  It is selfless acts of commitment to Him, and this is the truth that both Jesus and the Jesuit are making.  As a line from one of my favorite movies said, “These are the facts of the case, and they are indisputable.” 

Embracing Jesus Christ as our Lord and savior is an act of love, and it is that love that defines who we are as Disciples of Christ.  Whether we forgive, show mercy, or help others, it is for love that all these things connect.  In the closing of Ephesians, Paul, talking about wearing the armor of God, said, “Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth.” (Ephesians 6:14a)  Let us stand boldly in the truth that Jesus is indeed our savior, who frees us from sin and died so we may have eternal life.  How can Jesus Christ’s truth inspire you today?  What falsehood must you replace with God’s truth?  My prayer is that we acknowledge truth is truth no matter our title or clothes.  Amen.

Tues Devo: Walking

Ephesians 5:1-5 “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma. But immorality or any impurity or greed must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints; and there must be no filthiness and silly talk, or coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks. For this you know with certainty, that no immoral or impure person or covetous man, who is an idolater, has an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.” (NASB)

Hello,

It is easy to talk these days – or type – and get our feelings out there. We take a strong stance and count on slight aggression and vague statements about being supported by other facts to keep others at bay. We put all the attention to the arguments and words…..and whether it is intentional or unintentional – we distract attention from our actions. How are our actions these days?  

Paul makes some very strong statements about what we do. He instructs us to do more than just verbally show love for God – but show that love through what is done. It is about the walk – not the talk. But Paul doesn’t stop at the generalized “show God’s love” – he gets detailed later and challenges our behaviors.

So, how is the walk? Is it imitating God, full of love? Is it consistent in your behaviors, not just on Sunday?

I hope this challenges all of us to walk a little closer with God, and show His love.

Will Hill

His way is perfect

Psalm 18:30

As for God, his way is perfect:  The Lord's word is flawless; he shields all who take refuge in him.

We often have our own plan for how things should go.  Sometimes those plans do not work out as we would hope.  Last night I got to spend time with my cousin who I haven’t seen in over 20 years and his family.  They are missionary’s in Ecuador and are back in the states visiting for a short bit this summer.  My cousin was telling us about their work and sharing pictures with us.  He kept talking about how there is one village that they haven’t been able to get into yet, that every time they try they run into a road block.  That is when he seemed to have a moment of realization and said it is probably God protecting them as they have heard some pretty bad stories about that village. 

Here he has a plan to share Christ with these people who may have never heard of Christ, his heart is pure and just wants to serve yet he is stopped.  One might think negative in that situation however he realized that God’s way is perfect and that God shields them for taking refuge in him.

Have you planned something and it just never worked out then later you can see that God had a better plan?  I know I can certainly find multiple situations where that is true when I look back at my own life and plans.

May the Lord guide your ways today and always!

Thursday Devotional - Wrongfully Accused

Have you ever been wrongfully accused? If so, what did you do about it?

Joe was pulled over by a policeman who thought he was on the “wanted” list. Joe wasn’t speeding or anything but his old Acura looked similar to the car the “wanted” man drove. After talking to Joe for a while, the policeman realized he had the wrong guy.  

Jesus was wrongfully accused many times, arrested and never released. It amazes me how calm He was throughout all the accusations and abuse.

John 18:19-24         ¹⁹ Meanwhile, the high priest questioned Jesus about his disciples and his teaching. ²⁰ “I have spoken openly to the world,” Jesus replied. “I always taught in synagogues or at the temple, where all the Jews come together. I said nothing in secret. ²¹ Why question me? Ask those who heard me. Surely they know what I said.”

²² When Jesus said this, one of the officials nearby slapped him in the face. “Is this the way you answer the high priest?” he demanded.

²³ “If I said something wrong,” Jesus replied, “testify as to what is wrong. But if I spoke the truth, why did you strike me?” ²⁴ Then Annas sent him bound to Caiaphas the high priest.       

The high priest and religious leaders were to love and serve God with their whole heart! However, it’s obvious many of them were far from being in tune with God’s will and plans.

Have you been wrongfully accused within the Church? If so, how did you handle it? Did you retaliate, take revenge, or shun all those in the church?  Or, did you look for God to bring good from the situation and increase your trust in Him as your defender?

God may use the situation to direct you and me to a different local church or He may help us and the other member learn some valuable lessons. However God uses it, He can grow us through the difficult situation. We aren’t to abandon God and the Church. What if Jesus had given up when wrongfully accused?

Alice

Taking A Holiday With God

Now in those days, when the number of the disciples was multiplying, there arose a complaint against the Hebrews by the Hellenists, because their widows were neglected in the daily distribution.  Then the twelve summoned the multitude of the disciples and said, “It is not desirable that we should leave the word of God and serve tables.  Therefore, brethren, seek out from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business; but we will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”  Acts 6:1-4

Many of us took advantage of the 4^th of July holiday to do many things.  Some of which included reflecting and embracing the freedoms we enjoy and watching fireworks displays.  Others included getting away from the house to do mini-vacations to places both near and far from home.  It’s good to get away to unplug from all the things that go on in your life whether it be work or home to just relax.  In that space, I thought about focusing on God and those things that can prevent me from connect with Him.  We are influenced by so much like personal relationships, business situations, and political climate that it can overwhelm one and potentially impede our own ability to focus on God.  How can we successfully connect with Him when so much can become barriers to that connection?

Our efforts to connect with God must be one filled with intention.  We all can get caught up in the ‘busyness’ of life.  If we do not have an intentional plan of action to combat these times, we can lose sight of that which we can all rely on; God’s faithfulness and strength.  We must always focus on our relationship with Christ for the relentless pressures of the world are never ceasing.  In a similar circumstance, the Apostles in their early stages recognized such challenges, and thus looked to others to aide with other business to give themselves “continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” (Acts 6:4b)  Thus even then, a great emphasis was placed on ‘getting away’ from other things to focus on God and task they had ahead of them.

We are given access to God; the one who gives us peace.  Matthew 11 tells us what Jesus provides for all of His people.  It says:

Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.”  Matthew 11:28-30

Let us not be too shy to call or overburdened to forget.  Remember that God is your resting place.  How can ensure you rely on God when distracted?  What practice can you start to ensure a continual connection with God?  My prayer is that we go about finding peace with God . . . even if it means taking a holiday with Him.  Amen!