Tag: daily devotional

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Getting the Best Advice

“The Lord advisesthose who fear him.

He revealsto them the intentof his Promise.

My eyes are always on the Lord. He removes my feet from traps.”

Psalm 25:14-15

Where do you look when you need advice?   A mentor? A trusted friend?  A wise person in your life?   A parent?  A spiritual advisor?  The internet? Books?

How about God Himself?   Do you think of Him in that way?

An advisor is different from “materials.”   An advisor is an interactive resource…one who can listen to you, ask good questions, provoke your thoughts and help you see into the future a bit.   A good advisor has wisdom.

Thinking about God as my own Advisor adds a wonderful dimension to Who He Is.  Note the ways the Psalm writer describes Him:

  • He advises: Not demands, not commands.  We can go to Him with our needs, ask for His advice (with healthy respect), knowing that He is near, and aware;
  • He has already given us Promises, and He will help us understand the intent of those Promises.Knowing that He has made promises to us lays a beautiful groundwork for us to come to Him.  He will “go there” with us, helping us to understand the intent of those Promises.  He opens His own heart to us, willing to give us His Time and Patience as we ask Him to help us truly understand and clarify what His Promises mean in our lives.  He gives us permission to think, wonder, and ask questions.  There is a two-way relationship involved.
  • As the Psalm writer states, “my eyes are always on the Lord.” This One Who gave me life and made promises for my life is worthy of my conscious attention, always.  And there will be wonderful “Aha” moments throughout life when we see in new ways the loving and wise reasons behind His Promises and guidance.  (even when we have come precariously close to the traps along our path.)
  • When we step into one of those “traps”, His response is not to stand there saying, “I told you so!”, leaving us bloodied and unable to keep walking. He steps into that nasty, bloody situation….opens the trap, and removes my “foot” painful and gross as it is, freeing me from what I’ve blindly stepped into.
  • Best part: He’s never too busy, can always take my call, and He’s always right!

 

 

 

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Calling All Nations

“You will summon a nation that you don’t know,

    and a nation that doesn’t know you will run to you

        because of the Lord your God…..”

Isaiah 55:5

How do you do with “out of the box” thinking?  Isaiah was a very, very out-of-the-box man.  Prophets always are.  He could “see” things that did not yet exist.  He could “see” at times with God’s Eyes.

Prophets not only “see” with God’s Eyes, but they also have such an impact that an entire nation may be affected.  In this passage, the person God is talking to apparently did three basic things:

  • Got involved with a nation he did not know;
  • Called to (summoned) that nation;
  • Was present for the nation to run to.

How often has God “ear-marked” people to step into a situation…or a nation, that they do not know, to tell those who have not heard the Good News, but did not go?  Jesus’ last words on this planet had to do with the word “GO”….”into all the world…”   Isaiah said it was an honorto be Called.

The exciting part of Isaiah’s verse is the impact upon the people to whom the “called one” went:  “…a nation that does not know you will runto you…”

“Because of the Lord your God.”

I had just a glimpse of that when I met two strangers – religious leadership men – who had been searching for anyone who was a Follower of Jesus.  They had never met one.  But they had found a verse in their own Book that said they should find a ‘person of the Book’ (Bible) and ask them to explain about Christ.  When they realized that I was a ‘person of the Book,’ their excitement was incredible.  Of course, I was trying to not panic, not knowing what they were expecting of me! 

We never know what God may stir in someone’s mind or heart, nor in a nation’s mind or heart.  But we can be certain that He is moving….stirring….in this world, and those who know Him must be willing to get involved in bringing understanding about Who God Is.  We don’t need all the answers….no one on earth has that!  But to the extent that you have come to know God, He calls on you to share that knowledge…that experience in your own life and heart….with whoever comes to you….calls on you….asks questions…..and identifies “Something” in you that connects you with God.

 

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Leading a Nation

“Worship the Lord your God,

fear him,

 obey his commands,

 listen to what he says,

 serve him,

and be loyal to him.”

Deut. 13:4

Moses was going to die. He knew it.  God had told him.  These above words were uppermost in his mind.

After a life that began as a slave’s baby boy, he grew up in the palace of Pharoah.

He learned how to lead a nation there.

Then came 40 years as a shepherd out in the wilderness.

He learned to be alone, and how to lead mottley sheep in a dry land.

He learned to lead a nation there.

Next he followed God’s voice to deliver his birth-people out of godless Egypt.

He learned to lead a nation there.

Another 40 years of leading refugees, former slaves, through another desert.

There he learned to hear and speak with God,

receiving 10 crucial commands for his people to live by.

He learned to lead a nation there.

From a mountain top he saw the Land that would be Home for his small nation.

He learned to say, “Good-bye” to his nation there.

And found his Home with God.

He learned how to rest in the Arms of God.

And lead a nation there.

 

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Perfect Peace

“With perfect peace

 You will protect those whose minds cannot be changed,

    because they trust You.” 

Isaiah 26:3

The long history of God’s people is full of really tough times and experiences. Drama was always around the next corner, it seemed.  Wars, captivity, living in exile, being refugees, running for their lives, long periods of extreme cruelty, and Death.  God allowed all of this to be woven into their Story.  He saw it all.  He allowed it to go on.  That’s a tough thing for us to contemplate.

When I reverse the order of this verse, there are two things that are “on us” as His people:  His people trusted God, and their minds could not be changed.  Life on this earth is tough.  Sometimes it seems impossible.  TRUST requires intentionally putting our small hand into His enormous, powerful Hand….and hanging on.  No matter what.  It means accepting the fact that I cannot control the events of my life.  I can really try, but it is not humanly possible. What I can dois hold onto His Hand, like a child with his/her father. There we touch His Strength, His Presence, His Protection and Assurance.  Our Perfect Father has the perfect view of what is ahead, around and behind us.  We might even close our eyes as we squeeze His Hand.  That’s fine!  Hang on for dear life!

Unlike a human father, our Heavenly Father will not let go when we put our small hand in His.  And each time we experience Him as He walks us through this life, our trust grows. Each experience adds to our level of confidence  in HIM.Step by step, He will not let go…only wecan do that. We may have to walk through frightening times, painful experiences, rocky paths, dark days…life on this earth.  But, holding on tightly, our trust slowly grows.  Our minds begin to absorb the reality of His Presence, His Love, His trust-worthiness….especially through the most frightening times.

And slowly, slowly, with each experience we walk through holding His Hand, our mind becomes more believing because of what we’ve been through together.  Our trust grows, because He has walked withus.  We realize that keeping hold of His Hand becomes our safest place on earth. And out of the years of walking together through life, peace….PERFECT Peace…becomes our experience…It becomes part of our hearts….our minds.  It becomes TRUTH for us.  The pain and troubles of this earthly life do not change.  But the PEACEthat has grown and deepened through it all…remains.

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Growing Old

“Even when you’re old, I’ll take care of you.

 Even when your hair turns gray,

 I’ll support you.

 I made you and will continue to care for you.

 I’ll support you and save you.”

 Isaiah 46:4

God’s tender words to Isaiah are so sweet…gentle…and intimate.  Isaiah had lived a long, long life.  He’d seen many Kings come and go throughout his long life as God’s mouthpiece to His people.

Prophets are often loners.  Their lives are focused on watching for and listening to God.  They’re not afraid to speak words…give messages….that “rock the boat” of other’s lives.  (I lived with one….I know what that’s like! Major boat-rocker!)   They need to get away from the crowds and be able to position themselves to listen to God’s quiet Voice.  They need to focus.   Practical things of life – especially plans for old age – are not a high priority. They’re far more tuned in to the here and now of what God is doing and saying.

In Isaiah’s time, there was no social security, no “retirement”, no medicare, and likely not much security of having children to take care of an elderly Prophet of God.  As he aged, his old bones would have been affecting his daily life.  Being alone brings a new reality to becoming old. And Isaiah was very old….

The tenderness of God’s Words directly to Isaiah’s old heart…..that “ear” that had heard so many Words from God which were meant for others – even kings – are poignantly personal and intimate for this old prophet.   God covered all of those bases that become part of the realities of the aged.   He knew. He saw.  He understood.  He was present in, and for, Isaiah.  This Message was specially for His old faithful servant.  His prophet.

Those Words give us a beautiful picture of God’s intimate knowledge of us.  When we are His, there can be no greater Love in our lives….even when we are “alone.”  Our hearts can rest, knowing that He is with us . . . with me.

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Learning Trust

“Trust the Lord with all your heart,

and do not rely on your own understanding.

In all your ways acknowledge Him,

and He will make your paths smooth.”   

Proverbs 3:5-6

This was one of the first verses I memorized as a child.  It would come to mind often as I grew up.  For a long time it was just words.  But in my teen years, as my “path” became far more bumpy, uneven and painful, the verse also deepened in its meaning and reality in my life.  I came to know Him more deeply as we walked that rough path together.   I learned how trust-worthy God through those years together.

Fast-forward through love, marriage, starting a church, and having two little boys join our family.  Then came #3. He became a great “teacher” for me.

From his first birthday, my life became a blur…often finding him in yet another life-threatening situation, or seeing him dramatically writhing on the floor as if his life was coming to an end. He had an incredibly strong will.  I experimented with all kinds of methods of getting him to calm down and listen to me.  I would often stand over him simply saying, “You’re not gonna win. You’re not gonna win.”  Once he’d calm down a bit, I’d get on his eye-level, pull his little face close to mine, and say “look in my eyes…look in my eyes.”  Of course, his little eyeballs were going everywhere except into mine.  But when we finally were eye-to-eye, my words could begin to be “heard.”  Soon we would be back on track and going about our day…until the next crisis.  I had to be consistent with him in disrupting his strong will, but I also had to be consistent with the peace-making and love afterwards.

I think that became a life-lesson for him in learning to trust….trust that he was loved, trust that he had boundaries to live within, and trust that even when he was going down a wrong “path” the standards remained…and that he was still loved.

How do we learn to trust God?   It’s not just a word.  It’s not just a concept we can decide is true for us.  TRUST is built.  With time, through tough “bumps in the road”, through falls and bruises and choices that end up with us writhing on the floor.  Mywillagainst HIS WILL.  It comes through times of God orchestrating getting our attention, with our face in His Hands, Eye to eye.  Until we finally let His Words sink in, andour willgives into His.

Each time we get up, look in His Eyes, hear Him…and can walk away knowing His Love goes with us, our trust in Him grows…stronger, deeper, solid.  Like a child.

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Living Under the Shelter

“Whoever lives under the shelter of the Most High

will remain in the shadow of the Almighty.”   

Psalm 91:1

David, the shepherd boy who would become King, knew the dangers of living without shelter.  When shepherds take their flocks to the places where there is good pasture, it is normally a long trip, and sheep are not easy to move from one place to another. They are fearful animals, and almost any unexpected movement can send them into a panic…running for escape, even if it’s over the edge of a cliff.  They have no natural means of defense, except to run, often running into greater danger.

Pasture lands offer rare shelter for the sheep.  The shepherd himself must be their safe place.  The sheep need to see their shepherd, or they become skittish…nervous.  The sight of their shepherd brings a sense of calm and reassurance to the flock.  His presence is their shelter.

As “human sheep” we walk this earth, vulnerable and naturally defenseless to its dangers and evil.   Every human longs for shelter.  No matter how much we may try to create a safe place for ourselves, we cannot control every circumstance that comes our way.

To “live under the shelter” of the Most High, we must choose to enter there.  He will not force us into His Shelter. . . it must be our choice.  Coming and going in and out of His Shelter is not “living under His Shelter.”  To livethere is a choice on our part.  He opens the door and invites us in.  He allows us to choose.

Once I choose to live under His Shelter, I immediately experience being in His Shadow.  His Shadow is an extension of Himself. It is the evidence that He is there. He is present.  His Shadow cannot be where He is not.  His Shadow is proof that He Is right there….and very near.

The Most High has made Himself available to us.  But He will not force us to live under His Shelter.  Our Shelter is our safe place, our protection, the place where evil will never be invited and harm is kept at bay.  Stepping into His Shadow brings immediate relief from the “heat” of our day…the heat that could be deadly.  God places Himself between us and the blazing heat of life.  He provides His Own Shadow for our protection . . . our relief.

May we step into His Shelter with deep gratitude for His loving invitation.  And may we remain close to Him, within His very Shadow, where we find rest from the heat of this life, with full confidence in our Almighty One who has invited us to be so near to Him.

 

 

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What Are You Looking At?

“But the Lord told Samuel,

“Don’t look at his appearance or how tall he is,

because I have rejected him [David’s oldest brother].

God does not see as humans see.

Humans look at outward appearances,

but the Lord looks into the heart.”

1 Samuel 16:7

Samuel was God’s Prophet, and his assignment was to find the next King for God’s nation.  The “old” King was on a downward spiral and had to be replaced.  It was Samuel’s job to find the man God had chosen to be the new King.  But Samuel was looking for someone that fit his formula for a good king.

God already had made His choice, but it was not anyone that “fit” the qualifications for which Samuel was looking.

God’s choice was not a strong, wise, well-educated, experienced nor powerful man.  This was not a successful, famous leader.  He was not someone who had a proven track-record in business or economics or corporate success.  He was the “little brother.”  His renown only went as far as his dad, his brothers, and a bunch of sheep.

He was just a kid. His name was David.

Outwardly, there was no logical reason to consider that God would choose to use The Kid.  But God had been watching him before he was even born….the baby of the family.  He was watching as little David often got the “short end of the stick” in his family.  God saw how often David was left behind as his big brothers went off to do more “special things”….big-boy things, while David had to take care of a bunch of sheep.  Not an easy job.  They were not easy animals to care for…very low on the intelligence charts, easy targets for lions and bears, and pretty much anything else that had teeth. David’s focus each day was basically saving their lives….making sure they’re not eating deadly plants or falling off cliffs.  It was hard work, and very lonely.

But what God saw most in this young boy was his heart.  He was learning to know God through the challenges of his years of caring for those sheep:  God’s Nature, His Goodness,  His Mercy,

His Protection, His Presence, His Loving-kindness, and His Power. He could never have imagined what God had planned for his future. . . as one of the greatest Kings in history.

May we learn to see each other with even a glimpse of how God sees us . . . even the “most unlikely.”

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Whispers

Whispers a blog post written by Janet Lenz

 “Who is this that comes up from the wilderness,

leaning upon her Beloved?”

Song of Solomon 8:5.

I miss him.  I miss the Love of my Life.  I had never imagined any stage of my life without him.  There are SO many sweet, beautiful, loving and lovely memories that appear and swirl through my heart and mind.  Unexpected flashes of moments that I had forgotten, yet carrying the emotion and images of a memory.

He was my biggest cheerleader through the years, encouraging and cheering me on as I would step onto new ground, new life experiences, and new ventures.

Nearly crippled by fear the first time I headed to the Great Desert, my literal wilderness, I was panicking and trying to convince myself (and him) that this was only a test by God to see how far I’d go in facing my fears.  He calmly spoke words of truth to my frantic heart. I went….with his love and blessing.

I miss him.

And I was telling God how much I miss him.  Tears came.   Standing in my little kitchen, with a papertowel catching the tears, my heart whispered, “I miss being held.”

Within a heartbeat, I sensed God’s Presence so very near, and heard His gentle Whisper,  “I Am holding you.  I Am here.”

The Whisper continues . . .

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Living Your Identity

“The Father had put everything in Jesus’ control.

Jesus knew that.

He also knew that he had come from God

 and was going back to God.

  So he got up from the table, removed his outer clothes, took a towel, and tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and dry them with the towel that he had tied around his waist.”

John 13:3-5

Jesus knew exacty Who He Was.   And what an identity He had!!  He knew where He had come from, where He was going, and He knew the fact that he was in full control of everything!   He was One-of-a-Kind, in all of eternity.

Yet, directly tied to that Ultimate Identity, “because of that” look what He chose to do:

  • “So…He got up from the table.” Jesus got up from the cushion He was to sit on for this historic meal.  He stepped away from the table where His dearest friends would share the most important meal of the year, the Passover Meal.    Celebration. Family.  Remembering their people’s miraculous relationship with God.
  • “…Took off His outer robe”…His “good robe” . . .a mark of His identity and standing in that culture.  Jesus’ robe “had no seam”, a detail identifying the skillfully woven style of His outer robe, something of high quality.(John 19:23)
  • …”and instead took a towel and tied it around His waist.” The “uniform” of a servant, a slave.
  • “He poured water into a basin…” His friends knew exactly what that basin was for.  Jesus was preparing the “foot bath” for them.  This was the task of a servant, an act of total humility and practical necessity to be shown to guests.  This was a most lowly servant’s job.
  • “…and began to wash the disciples’ feet…” Dusty, dirty roads and hot climate made for sweaty, dirty people.  Sandaled feet took the worst of the dirt.  I would imagine smellyas well.  No one wanted to track dirty feet into someone’s home.  Keeping floors clean was difficult on its own, much less having a dozen men track the sand and dirt from outside into the room where they would eat the most important meal of the year.  Showing honor and hospitality in that part of the world was/is a high, high priority given to guests.  It would be shameful for the host to allow a guest to begin a visit without the best treatment they had to offer.  Jesus would have been the MOST honored guest that night, yet He purposefully took on the most lowly, humble role with His friends.  He put aside His Power and Identity and took on the lowest identity – that of a servant – who has no power at all.
  • “…and dry them with the towel He had tied around His waist.” This task takes time.  Washing….gently working the soap and water between toes, on the soles of each foot, and to the ankle.  It probably required changing the basin’s water many times, especially with 12 men. There is a humbling intimacy that occurs through this experience of having ones feet washed by someone of the home you are visiting.  There is personal care, gentleness, and time given in the process.  It is done with a heart of care and honor to each guest. It is not done quickly, as a dirty task that is finished as hurriedly as possible.  For the recipient, it is humbling.  Imagine the rough shape that open-sandaled feet are in, especially in a hot, dry, rocky land as Israel.  Cuts, bruises, calouses, blisters and hard, crusty skin (I don’t want to even think about the toenail situation)… each foot, by the hand of the host, is lifted, put into the basin of water, gently soaked and washed by the hand of the servant.  Then, the towel is carefully brought out to pat the freshly washed foot until it is dry.

“Jesus knew He had come from God and was going back to God.”   Very soon. Within the next few days.  He knew Who He Was….Whose He Was.  He knew “…everything was put in His [Jesus’] control”  by His Father.  He had the most miraculous, super-human, powerful, perfect Identity that ever walked the earth.  And He knew that these men, dear friends, would woefully fail Him in the coming hours and days.

Yet, in that Identity,  He chose humility, kindness, and love for His friends. He chose to serve them, notbe served by them.

 May we find such confidence in knowing Whose we are, that we can kindly, lovingly serve as Jesus served. . . even those who may hurt and disappoint us most.

 

Consider:

  • How do you handle “serving”?
  • When do you struggle with thoughts of “deserving better” than what comes your way?
  • How might Jesus handle “being in your shoes [sandals]” in those moments?