Making Good Use of This Training Ground

I would find myself whispering it to a friend on the phone, texting it in a message to my mom, and saying it on repeat to my own soul… this is time of preparation.

And Job’s youngest friend would remind him, too: the importance of preparing his heart in a season of turmoil and disruption in the highest form.

Zophar’s words in Job 11:13 echo my own hearts cry, “If only you would prepare your heart and lift up your hands to Him in prayer!”

Prepare.
Because this is our training ground.

My commentary would get at my heart in my quiet time, “…let nothing be left undone to cleanse the heart, the imagination, the inward chambers of the soul, in preparation for the coming of the gracious, renewing, consecrating presence of the Divine guest.”

And I wonder… is this what we are on the brink of… the coming of the gracious, renewing, consecrating presence of the Divine guest?

Ahh… then how magnificently important must our preparation be?

You… Christian soldier… were designed for this.
You were made for hard things.

Our business is to humbly attach ourselves to Jesus… by prayer, by supplication, by sincere repentance and by seeking Him with a pure and upright heart.

We might never get this opportunity again… to give Him a sacrifice that costs something of this magnitude.

And my personal conviction is to make the best of the time I have been given.
To make right any brokenness in relationships.
To repent of any known sin I am committing.
To position myself on my knees in prayer for our city, our country, the world.
To condition myself to steward well the blessing when it comes.

To express my longings with the urgency they require, and to anchor my love, my affections, and my devotion into the heart of Jesus Christ.

And like I said to a friend just yesterday, “In ALL of my life… may Jesus be glorified!”

I will say it again as often as I can… Jesus WILL be glorified and I WILL be strengthened.

May I make good use of this training ground.

He is Redeeming and Restoring All Things!

I would stumble upon the scriptures almost by accident in my quiet time.
Ahh…. but this weary heart knows that nothing is by “accident.”
And wouldn’t it be JUST like our God to point me to the promise at the time of pain?

Zechariah 10.
And the title tells it all.
“The Lord Will Restore His People.”

“Ask the Lord for rain in the spring, for He makes the storm clouds.  And He will send showers of rain so every field becomes a lush pasture.”  (verse 1)

I would read it in my commentary.. “Great rains usually accompany thunder and lightning.”
And isn’t that what it’s feeling like now?  Thunder and lightening?
It’s striking all around us.
It’s sound is deafening.

But great rain is coming.
And when God’s people pray for rain, we can be sure to get it.
And, “rain” enough, “so every field becomes a lush pasture.”

Because.. while we is asking, God is answering.

Seasonal rain is God’s mercy.  And the promise is that when we are in need, we have been granted the ability to ask and the expectation for it to come.

And more promises are uncovered when we dig in.
“I will strengthen Judah and save Israel; I will restore them because of My compassion… for I am the Lord their God, who will hear their cries.”  (verse 6)

“The people of Israel will become like might warriors, and their hearts will be made happy as if by wine.  Their children, too, will see it and be glad their hearts will rejoice in the Lord.”  (verse 7)

“When I whistle to them, they will come running, for I have redeemed them.  From the few who are left, they will grow as numerous as they were before.”  (verse 8)

“They will pass safely though the sea of distress, for the waves of the sea will be held back, and the waters of the niles will dry up.”  (verse 11)

And my heart would leap for joy as my soul finds peace and rest.  And in reading the words of hope, I cling to them as promises of redemption and restoration.

Ahh… for such a time as this!

God - send the rain so that every field becomes a lush pasture.  So that the field in me will be beautiful and yield a harvest of bounty.
Thank you, Father, that you are strengthening me… even now… even in this. 
Thank you for hearing my cries!
God, You are making me strong like a warrior and making my heart glad in the midst of chaos and uncertainty.
Count me among the “few”, God, who will grow more numerous than before.
Because of my great persistence in prayer, God, my children will, “see it and be glad in their hearts.”  Their children will praise the Lord because of generations of faithfulness!
I am standing upon Your promise that I will safely pass through this sea of distress as You hold back the dangerous waves that threaten my stability and security.

Hold to His promises, friends.
Claim them with your tongue.
TODAY is the day of salvation! (1 Cor 6:2)

He is redeeming and restoring all things!

Fill Your Life With Things That Prophesy

I heard a pastor say it recently, and I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since.  He said this, “You want your life filled with things that prophesy.”

He went on to explain that he could take you on a tour throughout his entire house and walk you through items, telling story after story of where this was purchased, and where that was purchased.  When they received this item, and what was happening in this season when this particular item was acquired.

I would bet we could all do that.

And maybe this will sound strange to you - but my mind shifted immediately to our bed.
Yes… of all the things I could think about, and I thought instantly about our temper-pedic mattress we purchased last year, just before we moved to Indiana.

It had been a tough season.  And for many reasons.
2018 would bring several layers of painful difficulties.
We would experience prolonged illness, job loss, financial strain, and hard goodbyes.
We would endure nights of sleeplessness, heartbreak with lots of tears, and anxiety we’d never anticipated to feel.

Oh, but God.
He never left us.
He never abandoned us.
And we learned more about His nature and His character during that time of our lives MORE than in any other season we’d faced as a couple before.

The final time I talked to my friend, Lesa, before the ugly disease would take her from this world all too soon, was on February 13, 2019, at 8:40 a.m.  I had awoken from sleep with her on my mind, and was messaging her to “check in.”  She would report about the setbacks she had experienced in her treatment plan, but how she was able to see God in all of it, and remained thankful for the “strong chemo that appears to be working.”  She would even sacrifice her precious time to include questions about Chloe in school, and always made sure to ask how Trevor and I were doing.  She would say these words, “Waiting for God’s timing can be trying”, and would ask that I pray, “that in His timing this unglued cancer will leave my body.  That this experience will help me grow stronger in my faith in God, and that I will accept whatever comes my way with grace and dignity.”

It was my last text from her, before she entered into her face-to-face encounter with her Savior last spring.

And in the summer there would be an estate sale at her house.
And in a time of need, and in a season of strain, we would gratefully purchase several items from her home.

And one was her bed.

And I can say with a heart full of joy, that there’s rarely a day that passes when I look at that bed and don’t think about her.
How beautiful she was.
How kind she was.
How generous she was.

How on a cold winter afternoon in December, just the year before, she hosted a Christmas luncheon for a few of her friends, and how wonderful she made it for us.  The lunch was perfect, the decorations were so festive, and she was happy and full of life.

And yet in almost a blink of an eye, she was gone.

But as I look at this bed every day, I am also filled with such joy and so much gratitude… for a God who provides.  For a God who sees, not only our gigantic needs, but also our seemingly trivial desires.

And I can look at this bed and say - THIS is more than a bed.
THIS is the thing that was given by God at a certain time in our lives when we needed to be reminded that THROUGH IT ALL - He is still God and He is still good.  Oh.. and that His timing IS perfect!
It’s no longer a bed that we sleep on - but it’s a expression of His manifest presence, and evidence of this ongoing relationship with a God who, “delights in me.”  (Ps 18:19)

And so I wonder if we can do it this week… while so many of us are at home anyway.

Can we look around our homes and take note of all the things He has done!
Can we look around and perceive the goodness of the Lord all around us!
To, instead of seeing lack, we focus on all the things that prophesy of His nature to abundantly bless those who love Him!

God wants our lives to be filled with things that prophesy… things that tell of our story with Him as the Author.  The things that tell of His mercy.  Things that infuse hope into the world.

I look around today and see things that tell His story of faithfulness in our lives! 

Can we be bold today to find the good, and instead of asking, “Why”, begin saying, “THIS is what we have seen Him do!  THIS is what God is doing!  And THIS is what He wants to do again!”

All is an invitation… how will we respond to all He has so lovingly given?

Kingdom Realities Through Declaration

Psalm 91:2 in the NLT says this, “This I declare about the Lord: He alone is my refuge, my place of safety; He is my God, and I trust Him.”

And the word I was struck with when I first read that passage is “declare.”

Notice, here, that David is doing more than personalizing it here… He’s using verbiage that expresses his action of “declaring” it out loud.

It’s as if He is communicating to us… his readers… the importance of declaration.  Our declaration of His goodness to the world around us.

I have said it for years and with greater intensity over the course of these last few months… what we say…. the words we speak… have greater impact over our realities than we realize.

Our words are powerful.
Scripture tells us:

• that they, themselves, release life or death.  (Prov 18:21)
• that they hold within them the power to destroy or rescue.  (Prov 11:9)
• that they have the ability to nourish our souls.  (Prov 11:17)
• that they bring us into good health.  (Prov 15:4, 16:24)
• that our speech is more valuable than gold and rubies.  (Prov 20:15)

And what we say - - to one another - - matters so much!

David says, “This I DECLARE about the Lord…”
David is choosing to be hope centered in a maddening world.
Despite his pain, despite his circumstance, David was making a formal decree with his mouth that shifted his reality.

The word “reality” means this = “resemblance to what is real.”
And while pain and suffering are real - God is “more real.”
His power and His goodness supersede ANYTHING that is happening in our nation.
His faithfulness endures forever and ever, and yet as Christians, often times we live opposite to that truth as we lose sight of biblical promises.

What are we saying TO one another about Jesus?
It’s so important that we make a decision daily to DECLARE what we know to be true about His nature and character.

I heard a pastor say recently, “Both hope and hopelessness are contagious.  Choose how infectious you want to be!”

We’ve gotta DECLARE what we know to be true of Him… to DECLARE what He is saying and what He has said.

We’ve gotta choose to Remember, Recall, and Repeat.
Remember all He has done.
Recall it to our memory often.
Repeat it for all to hear.

What we say with our mouths has the ability to change the conditions of our circumstances.
When we choose negative words…we live in a negative climate.
We must be intentional in our decrees to one another.

Col 3:16 says this, “Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts.”

Isaiah 35:3 says, “With this news, strengthen those who have tired hands, and encourage those who have weak knees.”

There must be power in our voice because Paul even tells us in Eph 5:12, that, “It’s shameful to even TALK ABOUT the things ungodly people do in secret.”

And so we must decide what kind of speech we’re going to have.
We’ve got to guard the words that we choose to let escape from our mouths.
“I will SAY of the Lord” (KJV)… He is good.  He is faithful.  He is powerful.  He is a refuge. 
“I will proclaim Your name to my brothers and sisters. I will praise You among Your assembled people.”  Psalm 22:22

Kingdom realities are released through declaration!

Is My Heart Right?

And I could hear it, almost as if it were on automatic playback in my head.  Over and over again I could hear the words come up in my mind, “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.” (Ps 51:10)

Hadn’t I been asking it on repeat for years now?
And yet here I was with another choice to make.

I thought back to the sticky note I had placed in the medicine cabinet of our master bathroom months ago.. “Lord, help me get this right!”

Because if this… this history I’m building with Jesus… this daily pursuit of all things holy… this strenuous exercise of my spiritual muscles… isn’t affecting all of the decisions I make, and changing who I am becoming, then what is it all for anyway?

And I could feel the overwhelming sensation to retaliate the moment it happened.  From the very onset I could sense a wrong sprit within me rise, and truth be told my automatic reaction was not pretty.

I had justified it in my mind.
It’s funny how we are experts in rationalization.
Especially when peace of mind is at stake.
Especially when retribution supersedes redemption as our natural “bent.”

But God would get a hold of my weary heart early. 
And so it is with those who want to do better.
The more we “think about Him”, the more instinctive our response becomes to “pleasing Him.”

“Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee: because he trusteth in Thee.”  (Is 26:3)

And I knew the decision I was getting ready to make had more to do with “punishment” and “pay back” than it did “grace” and “forbearance.” 
I knew it the very second the thought crossed my mind.
But vindication is invisible even though it contains the most deadliest potion.

I would look to my husband for help.
Because he knows my heart best. 
He knows how hard I’ve worked.
And He has the most invested in my progress.

I would ask him with a sincere heart to know, “Should I be doing this?  Because I want to make sure my heart is right!”

And I wonder how many bad decisions could be avoided if we simply asked this question?
Asked it of ourselves and someone who loves us best?
Because “I’ve got to get this right!”

The pause in asking that one simple question could change everything. 
“Lord… is my heart right?”  Because I want to be sure before I do this.
I want to be sure before I say this.
Before I make this decision.
Before I go into this environment.
Before I say these words.

Is my heart right?

I want to remember the words in Ecclesiastes 10:2, “A wise person chooses the right road; a fool takes the wrong one.”

Can we be brave enough to say, like David, “Put me on trial, Lord, and cross-examine me. Test my motives and my heart.”  (Ps 26:2)

I find myself saying it to myself often, “I’ve got this one chance to get it right.”

He’s assigned this impossible task, “…to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.”  (Mic 6:8), and His order holds within it an expectation of trust and fulfillment.

To do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with God.
And I cannot do any of those things with a mind set on revenge.

And so I add it to my long list of increasing memos, to remind myself of the importance of self-reflection before any questionable action: “Is my heart right?”

Because it matters much much more than we think.
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.”  (Mt 5:8)

Remove to Less Contagious Air

Psalm 91:5-6 says this, “Do not be afraid of the terrors at night nor the arrow that flies in the day.  Do not dread the disease that stalks in darkness, nor the disaster that strikes at midday.”

“By night” could mean those attacks that are most terrible and least avoidable.  Those things that makes progress and spread death in an invisible manner.

“By day” could mean the open mischief's, the bold enemy attacks, and the things discovered but cannot be resisted.

And yet I wonder if we, by manner of great diligence, can control either of these things, or both.

As of a few months ago I pay close attention to how I “go to sleep.”
When it is tempting to watch news, read facebook, or repeat the portions of my day or week that have been less than lovely, I have been practicing a habit of “aligning my heart with God’s heart.”  For me, this means praying or meditating on His goodness.  Reviewing things my head that I know to be true of God and His nature.  By doing this, I am conditioning myself for a “good and restful night”, and ever more than that, it is my way of “choosing peace.”  I even have a list of God’s character traits sitting in the drawer of my nightstand, so to keep my mind focused on Him.

It’s so important to continue feasting on that which is good.
Especially in these trying times our nation is facing.

But there are also arrows that fly by “day” that are just as devastating.
And through they tend to differ from the ones “at night” that seem less avoidable, they are highly dangerous because given our human “retaliation” mindsets, they seem less resistible.

But we have a responsibility.

First Peter 5:8 says this, “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”

And he does so often in the midday, when our consciousness would seek to defend and retaliate and seek revenge.
But that’s the point.
Because he knows that if he can bring us to that “breaking point”, he has won.  And it’s a slow but steady downward spiral that follows.

And so what can we do?
We can remove ourselves from the toxic environment.
We can insist on living in the atmosphere of less contagion.

Sometimes we unknowingly heap unnecessary destruction upon our lives because we remain in company… in conditions… that are unhealthy and downright lethal.
Think about the current call to social distancing that our nation is experiencing now.
We are being “ordered” in many communities, to reduce our social involvement to less than 10 people, in an effort to reduce the effects of a world spread pandemic that is threatening lives at an increased rate daily.

And the same thing is happening with the people of God.
While we are called to a world that is contaminated with disease, we are not called to be of the ones filled with corruption that only serves to inflect the people of Jesus.
While we have been commissioned to “seek and save”, we are called to do so with all guardianship and diligence, “Keep your heart with all vigilance…” Proverbs 4:23

There are some conditions we must refuse ourselves entry as it would cause more harm to all that we are trying to make better within our own lives.
We must be wise and,  “Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers.”  (1 Tim 4:16)

And so we actively avoid the “arrows flying by day” when we desire to remove ourselves to a less contagious air.. when we remove our habitation and, “guard the good deposit.”  (2 Tim 1:14)

Ahh… that we would remove ourselves to a less contagious environment lest we become diseased.

It matters far more than we think.

Just Keep Flying Up!

It has been said of the hawk, that most species usually cannot fly over tree-top level.  While crafty and resourceful, they remain dependent on food sources from ground level.

It has also been observed that small birds, who would serve as “perfect prey” to these larger birds (specifically the Hawk and the Falcon), have been successful in their escape by flapping their wings at a more rapid pace, thus lifting them further into the air where they cannot be easily captured.

The enemy of our soul, Satan, has been described in scripture as, “the prince of the power of this world” (John 14:30), and also as, “a fowler” (Psalm 91:3).

Satan is always a fowler (a hunter of birds), and his goal is to catch men in his net.  His aim is to distract us from a full life in Christ, weaken the power we have residing in us from Jesus, and to ruin the life of godliness inside us.

He’s cunning, craft, and calculated.

And I have learned in my lifetime that very often, when the enemy fails in his open attempts to destroy by means of deliberate attacks, he will use a hawk to bring down his prey.

Have you ever been spoken badly about?
Have you ever had your good reputation tarnished by revengeful spirits and gross jealousy?
Sometimes even worse altogether… have you ever had a close family member misjudged or lied about?  Has someone hurt your child or polluted your family’s good name?

 I would think this reality has been experienced by all of us at one time or another.
It is my strong belief that no one… not one of us… escapes this planet without some form of slander and persecution.  1 Timothy 3:12 says this, “In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted…”

In fact, Jesus says it to His disciples in an interesting response found in Mark 10.  When their spokesperson, Peter, says in verse 28, “We’ve given up everything to follow You.”  Jesus responds and in verse 30 says, “{You} will receive a hundred times as many houses, brothers, sisters, mothers, children, and property - ” but then adds something interesting to the text, “along with persecution.” 

It would seem that persecution was to be expected for the lives who are truly committed to following in His ways.  Because a multitude will reject what they cannot understand.  A host of unbelieving - even among Christians - will likely persecute what is difficult to rationalize and remains illogical to worldly perspectives.

Persecution… accusations… slander… it will come.
For the Jesus-people especially, the enemy will send down his agents - the hawks - to swoop in and descend upon unsuspecting birds, all just trying out their newly developed wings against flight patterns and harsh elements.

But the bird has a chance if he simply flies up. 
The hawk can do no harm to the precious feathered creature while they, indeed, remain above him.  It is only when they lower their aviation that he can be at all injurious to him.  It is only by way of soaring, “high on wings like eagles” (Is 40:31), that they will be safe from the fowler’s snare (defined as = “anything serving to trap or entangle unawares.”)

We must keep aware of the danger that is lurking all around us - often times disguised by human agents - seeking to kill us.  We’ve been told before, “rise above” it - and perhaps this is the best illustration of it ever.  Just maybe those words have never rang more true in the ears of the one who knows belittlement and defamation.  And just possibly we can encourage ourselves with those words, “fly higher little birdie.”

Because the higher we go, the safer we are.
Because the more forward we fly, the more protected we are.  The more shielded we become.

Closeness to the King ensures us a most divine protection.
All shall be well if the heart be kept from revenge, and if the hands refrain from entanglement of sin-filled schemes and turbulent tactics.

To the one who has been seeking to look more like Jesus, we must come to know that His ways include a different approach, “He did not retaliate when he was insulted, nor threaten revenge when he suffered. He left his case in the hands of God…”  (1 Peter 2:23)

When dealing with the slanderous hawk, fly up little birdie, fly up!

Nearest To His Heart When We're Under His Wings!

Psalm 63:7 is such a great verse for us to cling to during these trying and difficult times.  “Because You are my Helper, I sing for joy in the shadow of Your wings.” 

“In the shadow of Your wings.”

In difficulty sometimes it’s hard to see His face.
Other times He deliberately hides His face for a season.
But He always offers, to us, the protectiveness of His wings.

For some reason, when I read those words in Psalm 63, my mind went immaturely to a picture that was taken of my niece and I years ago when she was probably 7 or 8.  I have no idea why this was the image that popped into my mind.  In fact I tried to locate it, but couldn’t.  But I remember it vividly in my mind.

It was a Friday night and my daughter was having a sleepover, and my niece was there too.  We had just received word that her dad was hospitalized for a health concern, and she was pretty worried about her daddy.  Up to this point she hadn’t really “took to me” in a loving and maternal way, but in these difficult moments, she needed reassurance and hope.  Upon hanging up the phone with her mom she quickly darted over to me, sat in my lap, wrapped her arms around my waist, and gently nestled her head into my chest.

And in that moment she received what she needed.
Safety.
Love.
Assurance.
Peace.

And she remained there until she felt strong enough to continue playing with the rest of the kids.

Looking back on that moment… now frozen in time… it was a turning point for us.  Before this, she had only known of my character from a distance.  She had only been a witness to my nature without intimate experience.  But now… by manner of personal acquaintance and physical companionship, she understood that I was someone who could be trusted.

At times like this… when we are tempted to believe that God has hidden His face from His people… it is most important for us to stay hidden underneath His wings.

But know this… we are nearest to the HEART of the Father when we’re under His wings.

I think back to that image of Maya and I and the way her head was tucked safely under my arm, resting there upon my chest.  My heart.

She as nearest PHYSICALLY to my heart because she was under my wing.

Metaphorically speaking we are nearest to His heart when we reside up underneath His wing.
We get to know the nature and the character of our good good God.
We become intimately aware of His love, His forgiveness, His mercy, His protection, His grace, His power, His strength.
The closer we choose to be to Him, the more evident His character becomes to us, and the more evident His character becomes to us, the more we can trust Him with our whole lives.

Friends … He still has the whole world in the palm of His hands.
Scripture tells us that He does not change.  He cannot change.
And for that we can safely rest in the shadow of His wings.


We’re nearest to His heart when we’re under His wings!

Consume My Imagination God!

Isaiah 26:3, in The Passion Translation, says this, “Perfect, absolute peace surrounds those whose imaginations are consumed with You; they confidently trust in You.”

Just… wow!

The word “surrounds” can also be translated to being “watches over”.
PEACE “watches over” those whose imaginations are consumed with Jesus!

The imagination is what forms up one’s reality.
The imagination, “the faculty of the mind, the action or process of images and concepts, the conception or mental creation” is what oftentimes controls us.  What we deliberately choose to focus on, think on, meditate on, fixate on, and “imagine”, often reigns supreme and dictates our days.

Look at another meaning of the word “imagination”…. “ability to face and resolve difficulties; the power of reproducing images stored in the memory under the suggestion of associated images or of recombining former experiences in the creation of new images directed at a specific goal or aiding in the solution of problems.”

Wow.

Seems to me that what we “imagine” has great power in our lives.
And so it becomes SO IMPORTANT to fixate our minds on God.
To center our thoughts upon Him.
And that might mean to reduce the amount of negativity we allow into our lives.
That might mean having to minimize what we watch on TV, what we engage with on social media platforms, who we choose to actively surround ourselves with.

I believe it is of the UTMOST importance - now more than ever - to, as Paul puts it in 2 Timothy, “guard the good deposit.” (1:14)

If we want to experience ANY amount of PEACE during these difficult times (and I believe sincere followers whose “mind is stayed on God” are the ONLY ones who can have this kind of peace), we are going to have to maintain imaginations that are CONSUMED with Him.  That means thinking about Him all the time… focusing on Him all the time… praying to Him all the time.

Look around.  He’s here!  He’s never left!

Now is a critical time for the believers of Christ.  It’s time to rise up church.  And we can only do this if we have imaginations that are radically consumed with Jesus.

Let’s be vigilant over:

• what we’re listening to.
• who we’re listening to.
• what we’re reading.
• what we’re saying.
• who we’re surrounding ourselves with.
• what we’re fixating on.

It matters, friends.  It really matters.

Consume my imagination, God!

Our Victory Story

God is always good.  And He always leads to the right passages at the right time.

Luke 10.
Jesus sends out His disciples for the necessary work of evangelizing.  Seventy-two, in addition to the 12, were commissioned in pairs into all the towns that Jesus would be visiting.  The assignment was precise, “The harvest is great, but the workers are few.  So, pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask Him to send more workers into His fields.  Go, and remember that I am sending you out as lambs among wolves.”  (verses 2 and 3)

Jesus continues on with specific instructions concerning the order to “go”, all reflecting the importance and critical nature of the entrusted work.

When the disciples returned, they joyfully reported to Him, and were thrilled to say, “Lord, even the demons obey us when we use Your name!”  (verse 17)

And when I saw the verse that followed, I was struck.  The Lord responds to them by saying this, “I saw Satan fall from heaven like lightening!”  And when I read the words in red, hope began to rise within me.

The tense of the first Greek verb “beheld”, which is found to be one used in the KJV (“I beheld Satan as lightning fell from heaven.”),  implies continuous action.  The proper print should read, “I was beholding Satan as he fell.”

And this changes the game.

While the disciples were working in their fields with an intense assignment, their Master had been following them in spirit, monitoring each step of their victorious efforts in the face of uncharted conflict.  They had, indeed, “never been this way before” (see Josh 3:4), but all the while they had an onlooking Father who was chaperoning their success.

For me, this served as a beautiful picture of a good Father, who in His kindness, teaches, releases, and oversees.  The success that the disciples were having over the enemy was the beginning of a final conquest over the prince of darkness.  Ahh… and it’s just like our God to use His beloved ones to co-labor with Him here in the earth!

It was as if Jesus was saying to His students, “I have been following you around and I have seen you working on Mine and My Father’s behalf.  And as I was watching, I have been a witness to the triumphant victories.. the ‘work you did in My name’ was beautiful to watch, and as you were concerned about the struggle, I was focused on the advantage this was having for you, and the improvement it was producing within you.  I had you in my view the entire time, and  I was beholding Satan.  As you rose, he fell!”

The commission was important because Jesus was traversing upon His final journey to Jerusalem, and the people who resided in these places that He was to visit for the final time, needed desperately to be readied to receive Him.  These disciples, who served as “forerunners” to Jesus Himself, had been tasked with the kingdom announcement that salvation had come (see 2 Cor 6:2, “today is the day of salvation.”)

And I believe it with all that is within me, in these uncertain times, we have a Master who is keeping watch.  While we’re working.. He is following us in spirit, gazing upon each step of our victorious conflict.

He is watching over all of it. 
He sees the evil.  He sees the devastation, fear, and panic.
And He’s keeping a close eye upon His children.
He knows the hearts of His servants, and He is diligently overseeing the good use we’re making of these challenging times by “staying on Him.” (Isaiah 26:3)

This is an invitation for all believers everywhere to enlist ourselves in the work of Jesus this side of eternity. 
This is an opportunity to demonstrate the power of our good God in “the land of the living” while there is still time.  (Heb 3:15)
This is an appeal straight from the heart of the Father to engage with His purposes in the earth while it still “today.”  (Heb 3:13)

And while we are working… He is watching.  Our Master is following our footsteps as we charge into battle proclaiming the Gospel message in His name.  And while observing our steps of victory that are bringing destruction of our enemy… “crushing Satan under our feet” (Rom 16:20)… He is celebrating His finished work in us.  Many professing Christians stop short of the cross.  And this… THIS… is victorious living PAST the cross!

In these trying days, we must commit ourselves to outwardly demonstrate the victory of JESUS in our lives.  As the song lyrics say, “I raise a hallelujah… in the presence of my enemy.”  It is my story of victory in the midst of painful circumstances that annihilates his intended purpose of destruction.

And so I ask myself the question and pose it to you today too: Is our victory story making evident the fall of Satan?

May it be said of us, “I saw Satan fall like lightening.”

Say And See Good

I heard it said of a pastor very recently in an interview and I haven’t stopped thinking about it since.  He was asked how it was that he was able to preserve high integrity in his life where he never spoke one ill word about another person.  In speaking to scores of other people regarding his character, they learned that it was the one amazing trait he had maintained through the years, and was highly honored for this unnatural ability, especially of others in leadership and specifically of those who were known to have disrespected him in speech throughout his pastoral life.  In response to the question he said this, “Because I fear God in them too much.”

Understanding that we are “ALL” made in the image of God, his conviction stayed steady all these years: to blaspheme another, was, indeed, to blaspheme God.

Scripture tells us that we are, “fearfully and wonderfully made.” (Ps 139:14)
And I wonder, could the real reason we cannot honor others well is because we actually hold no real “fear of God” in them?  That we don’t, or simply can’t see them, “made in the image of God” Himself, and so of course, because we don’t see that about them, we can’t experience fear inside of us that allows us to possess that “awe and wonder.” (see Ps 33:8)

I was reading a commentary recently that stopped me in my tracks.  While it’s reference is on the Christian minister, I would consider just how applicable it could be to national leaders, local dignitary’s, and social influencers… perhaps those, even, to whom we strongly disagree or disapprove.  The commentator says this, “It is a great evil to blast the reputation of Christian ministers, for it undermines their influence to do good.”

Could the same be said of any “leader?”
Take a look at the word “undermine.”  It’s interesting to note it means this = “to injure or destroy by insidious activity, to attack by indirect means, secret or underhanded means, to weaken or cause to collapse as digging away the foundation.”

And so I wonder.
Are we doing those things when we disrespect and dishonor those in political power?
Are we doing those things when we disrespect and dishonor those who are on the front lines making major decisions that affect our lives?  The ones who’ve been appointed by God for “such a time as this” regardless of our estimation of their worthiness?

Could it be that we bring injury to our own living conditions; that we destroy any hope for a more promising future; that we, by our insidious behavior, secretly weaken the atmospheric conditions of our world; that we undermine their influence to DO any amount of good?  Couldn't our good “expectations” of the God in them… the God who made them, too, “fearfully” and “wonderfully”… create an increase of good activity?

It can be said of our children, when they are young, that they become what their parents believe they can be.  And that the actions we see in them as they mature are simply a direct result of the words spoken to them and about them growing up.

Friends.. our leaders need the influence of the Lord (by our speech in reputation and in prayer).  When we accuse them, scold them, ridicule them, mock them… we find ourselves in opposition to God Himself.  I heard it said once before this way, “We are not the accuser, nor can we be related to the accuser.”

We’ve gotta get better.
Our world doesn’t change until we change.
And those of us who are Christ followers are called to follow Christ.  Imitate Jesus.
To bring heaven to this world until the atmosphere of heaven affects the atmosphere of our world.
How we speak matters so so so much more than we think.
We are bringing influence to our neighborhoods, schools, cities, communities, and country by reflecting the realities of an unseen world.  We are being afforded, every day, an opportunity to infuse joy and peace and love into conditions we’ve labeled as “hopeless” and “bleak.”

When we see them… do we see Him?  Regardless of our personal assessment, and suspicion, they are - as you are - fearfully and wonderfully made.  And you and I just might have what it takes to impact the landscape of tomorrow.

Speak good.  Be kind.  Leave judgement to Him.
And pray for them… not at them.
Say what you want to see and watch how God writes His beautiful story.  Nothing changes until those who love Him get this right.

My God, You Always Deliver

I would feel the fear begin to settle in on Tuesday morning following a phone call from my daughter living over 1,500 miles away in northern, California.  I could hear it in her voice, “Mom, I’m sick.”  And my momma heart would sink.

And in temptation to panic, I would go to the scriptures to find comfort.

Second Timothy chapter 4, verse 18… in the NLT says this, “Yes, and the Lord will deliver me from every evil attack and will bring me safely into His kingdom.”

The KJV says it this way, “And the Lord will deliver me from every evil work and preserve me for His heavenly kingdom.”

The word “deliver” here is interesting.  The meaning of the word is this = to carry and turn over to intended recipients; to provide a delivery service; transfer, redeem, rescue, to extract something.

And then I read it in my commentary that these strong words from our beloved Paul do not mean “exemption from the trial”, … and not even, “escape from the uttermost severity of it.”  It goes on to say that, “‘He shall deliver me from every evil work’, not because the sword will not fall upon my neck” (remember, Paul would soon suffer martyrdom), “but because, when it does, it will not part me from my Christ.”  And that, “‘He shall deliver me from every evil work’, not because I shall not taste the bitterness of the cup that is commended to my lips” (ahh, yes, Jesus did this!), “but because in the very act of drinking the most nauseous potion I shall take it as a cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the Lord.” 

THAT is deliverance.
THAT is our GOOD GOOD gracious God delivering us from all evil.
Carrying us.
Turning us over to Him… our intended recipient.
Providing a delivery service straight to Him.
Transferring us from what was intended to bring us harm.
Redeeming us.
Rescuing us.
Extracting us from the evil that was designed to break us.

He is with us, friends.

He shall deliver us.  Not because we won’t be “shipwrecked” on the journey (Acts 27)…we might be… “But take courage!  None of you will lose your lives, even though the ship will go down.”  (Acts 27:22)

He is a GOOD Father.
And my focus must remain on Him as my Deliver. 

May No One Find Fault

I had been thinking about it so much lately… this idea of finger pointing and fault finding.  It can be so easy for us to do… but I wonder what might be possible if we shift our focus for a moment from refusing to find fault in others to refusing there to be fault found in us.

We read about it in Romans 14… this idea of not causing your brother or sister to stumble.
Verse 13 says this, “So let’s stop condemning each other. Decide instead to live in such a way that you will not cause another believer to stumble or fall.”

And upon immediate glance we may consider the ways we “cause another believer to stumble or fall.”  Things that involve me disrespecting convictions you hold in high regard in your life.  For instance… if I believe smoking cigarettes is not wrong, but you strongly believe it is, and I smoke around you, you, perhaps you may be tempted to fall, in effect, from what moral or spiritual code you adhere to.

But I wonder if there’s more we do to “cause other people to stumble or fall” that is less obvious and yet even more dangerous.

Old Testament King David is such a beautiful example for us.
One look into his journey and it doesn’t take us long to see that the highest concern of his life was that he would always possess an intimacy with God.  It seemed to be the chief interest of his life to have the presence of the Lord and to represent Him well.

In Psalm 25 he says this 4 different times when praying to God regarding his enemies, “Do not let me disgraced.”
I remember reading that and at first glance thinking, “David was only concerned about himself.  He was only concerned with HIS reputation.”
But I am not so sure.
The word disgraced means this, “loss of respect and honor, being out of favor, to be dismissed or discredited.”

Ahh… and so could it be that this King David… the one considered, “A man after God’s own heart”, was just that, after all?  A man who’s primary employment was the desire to not be “dismissed or discredited.” 
Perhaps David knew that his good reputation carried significant weight, and that when HIS reputation was disgraced, the reputation of the good Father He committed his life to following, was dismissed.

If David lost respect and became, “dismissed with discredit”, others would be tempted to disbelieve his claim of a good God and ultimately reject Him for themselves.

It’s interesting to note that one of the highest qualities required for a leader in the church of Ephesus, according to Paul in 1 Timothy 3:7, was that, “… people outside the church must speak well of him so that he will not be disgraced and fall into the devil’s trap.” 

Perhaps my reputation is more important than I ever thought before.  And I return to Romans.  Verse 16 continues on with this in the King James Version, “Let not your good be evil spoken of.”

And I wonder… how in the world could what we consider “good” be considered by others, “evil?”
Maybe we do the right thing… we look the right part.
We go to church, we praise and we worship, we engage in the big bold prayers, we listen to the sermon, we take notes, we write the check for weekly tithe, and we serve with our best smile.
All good?  Yes!
But then maybe we get home.  We become frustrated.  We yell at our spouse, we belittle our neighbor, we gossip about family, and we tear apart the country’s leaders with our tongue.
All the while our newly believing spouse, our impressionable children, our unbelieving friends, and/or our disenchanted family member who was hurt by the church years ago but is now considering giving it another shot because she “felt something stirring” inside of her by observing what seemed to be authentic worship while watching an online service earlier that day, are all confused by our behavior.
Not only have we unknowingly eradicated the sincerity of our worship, now we have compromised the effectiveness of God’s reputation by wrongly demonstrating the Lord’s impact and influence in our own life.  Now this… this may be considered “evil” and likely be rejected by those who may have been radically persuaded into transformation and salvation.

It’s a sobering thought.
But one worth considering if we are serious about changing the world we live in.

Oh that my heart would be open to all He wants to do, not only IN my life, but THROUGH my life.  May I forever consider the divine impact I have been invited to participate in for His purposes!  And may I live in such a way that no one can find fault in me.

The consequences are absolutely too dangerous.

Corrupt Company

There’s a fairly well-known story in the Gospel’s about a man who brought his son to Jesus for healing of his tormented body from an evil spirit. One version of the story can be found in Mark 9.

After bringing his son to the disciples for healing, which they couldn't do (based not on their absence of power, but on the father’s absence of faith), he desperately cries out to Jesus to heal him.

And we witness, in this story, the weakest level of faith found in all of scripture. The father says to Jesus, “Have mercy on us if you can.” (verse 22b)

And of course Jesus could. He responds to the man’s unbelief by saying, “Anything is possible if a person believes.”

And of course we know the rest of the story.
Jesus heals.
In fact, no where else are the words spoken concerning the casting out of an evil spirit and only penned by Mark, Jesus says, “I command you to come out of this child and NEVER ENTER HIM AGAIN.”

But I want to take a closer look at something else, perhaps less recognizable.

Verse 26 documents what happens following the casting out of the evil spirit.
The bible says this, “Then the spirit screamed and thew the boy into another violent convulsion and left him. The boy appeared to be dead. A murmur ran through the crowd as people said, ‘He’s dead.’”

Only in the NLT do we find the additional word here, “murmur.”

And it’s an interesting word that means this = “a mumbled or private expression of discontent; moan, growl, babble, grumble, complain, murk.”

And I started thinking of how influential negativity can be on our lives.
How burdensome the complaints can be on a person - especially one working so hard towards righteousness.

We can see an authenticity in the father’s heart… a sincere desire to have his faith strengthened. In verse 24, following the gentle rebuke from Jesus concerning His ability to heal, the man says, “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!” The TPT says it this way, “… help my little faith.”

I have a hard time holding back the tears when I read this.
Because the truth is we’ve likely all been there.
We can perhaps all recall a time when our faith, though present, was deficient.
And so many of us can relate to the father’s desperation for all he lacked that could just be contributing to the very condition his son currently found himself in.

And the truth here is that faith, when weak, has the tendency within it to become even more anemic when in close proximately to those with none at all.

The father, in a current state of hopelessness, was greatly attempting to rekindle what had been left smothered for far too long. And the murmuring from the crowd who had been pressing in long and hard with cynicism and suspicion, was the last thing he needed.

My daughter has a saying we joke about in our family. She loves to say it, “Mom, that helps no one.” She’d say it when I stated the obvious about the impending doom of school work deadlines in high school. I’d say, “Chloe, you have just a few hours left to complete that project!”, to which she’d respond, “That helps no one!”

We chuckle, but I suppose it’s true.

The boy here, appeared dead.
At first glance it would seem as though there was reason to have a confirmed skepticism regarding Jesus’ attempt to heal.
But when Jesus spoke, healing was administered, regardless of present conditions of confusion.

And so it becomes, for us, a lesson concerning the company we keep.
Pay attention to the ones who murmur and complain.
Be watchful of the ones who remain contemptuous and derisive.
It truly helps no one.

We need to surround ourselves with those who inspire us to faith. Those who encourage us in our spiritual advancement. Those who believe with us for impossibilities, especially when the present course seems impassible.

While we are called to a hurting, sin-filled world and charged to bring the Gospel message to every unbelieving heart, we must carefully and jealousy guard OUR hearts from the disease of pessimism and bitterness - lest we become like them. (Ps 135:18) We must attend well to the selection of those within our closest circles, so that we are properly strengthened by the collective faith of our tribe.

Weak faith is compromised by corrupt company.

There's A Shift Happening!

I wonder, often, how much is changing in and around us because of our consistent, faithful, heart-felt prayers?

I often look at my own life and the abundant blessings I have been able to enjoy in my lifetime and wonder… “Who do I owe my gratitude for the prayers they prayed for me all these years?”

And I would think long and hard about it on a Tuesday morning in my office.  And the Holy Spirit would prompt me to write it in my prayer journal.  Yes… and right next to the name of the one who has been on my prayer list for several months now.  The one who caused pain and heartache.  The one in whom it was discovered was speaking harsh words about myself and my family.  The one who’s lies had stirred within me an immediate need for retaliation, all the while knowing it wasn’t right.

And all those months ago He would ask me to do something.  An experiment of sorts.  “Pray for her every day.  Commit to replacing pain with prayer and then see what I can do.”

Challenge accepted.

And in all honesty, I can’t recall a day I’ve not prayed for her.
And it’s not because I have it all together.
But mainly because I don’t.
And I need… desperately… to be changed.
And if He chooses to grow by clippers and chisel, then I am ready.

And I would begin the praying by “feeling.” 
And because I didn’t feel “gratefulness”, my prayers often lacked girth.  Because in the beginning I lacked “deliberateness”, my prayers often suffered depth.  Instead of seeing with intention the opportunity to change my condition… and moreover hers… I was deficient in power and authority.

But I was determined.
And I was consistent.
And in the coming months would begin to see a radical difference in the way I was praying.  The words I was using.  The sincerity He empowered me with surprised me.  And although it was slight in progress, over time it altered entirely.

My prayers that began with “feeling” now were fueled with “purpose.”
Because the world doesn’t change unless we’re willing to change first.
Us.. the Jesus people.  The one’s who know the One who has the great power AND willingness to change everything!

And slowly over time I began realizing that the intentionality of my prayers were changing.  And in doing so, they were not only changing me, but it’s as if I could actually feel a shift happening right before my eyes.

When we pray for the very ones we may be tempted to call “evil”… for the very people we consider enemies… and for the ones we find most fault with… we suddenly ignite a godly influence into the atmosphere.  We release a regenerating grace into the environment by inviting God to move, like only He can, in the lives of those around us.

By our consistent and committed petitions, we offer those we are praying for the gift of Jesus they may not otherwise receive if it wasn’t for us.  By the words offered to heaven on behalf of other people… and I believe especially concerning the ones we find most difficult to speak about, let alone petition for… we create a miracle-working climate where they now have access to God-size values.

I always say - no one who speaks ill of myself or my family stands a chance of NOT being prayed for.  In fact, you just secured yourself a spot on my prayer list.  And you will remain there until I am changed… until you are changed… or both!

The sticky note I would keep in my prayer journal would be this:
“Maybe I’m not seeing FULL answers to prayers (YET!)… but trust and believe that there’s a SHIFT taking place because of my daily sacrifice of prayer!”

We serve such a BIG God, friends!

May YOU Be Evident In My Life

Today, God, my prayer is that YOU would be evident in my life.  That others, when they observe my life, will be able to see YOU.  Less of me, more of YOU.

These are my daily prayers.

And I realize that it greatly depends on three things:

• my choices

• my character

• my conduct

I get to make choices that point to Jesus.
Choices like loving well, speaking kindly, expressing gentleness, and exhibiting self control.
It may be choosing to forgive an offender, choosing to let go of bitterness and revenge, or choosing to turn from the engagement of simple gossip.

I get to demonstrate godly character to everyone I come in contact with.
Character that looks more like Jesus - humility in the face of cruelty, peace in the eye of the storm, and endurance in the midst of hardship.
It may mean refusing to find fault because I know a little something about undeserving grace.  It may mean showing honor despite perceived worthiness.  Or it might mean self sacrifice if it means bringing glory to His name.

And I get to determine righteous conduct even when it’s least convenient.
Conduct that conveys my commitment to the better way - the Jesus way.
Because everything I do points directly to the thing I value the most.  All actions are a direct reflection of what lies deepest in me - my heart.
And so it may mean serving well even when I am hurting the most, staying when it would make better sense to leave, or speaking His good nature into every broken situation I enter into.

I get to be His vessel today.
I get to be the deliverer of His love.

My big prayer is that God would be made evident in my life today by whatever method He chooses.

Father, prepare my heart, my hands, my feet, and my mouth, to go where You’re leading.

I trust You.

You Answer The Sacrifices Offered On Bended Knees, God!

I would hear it in my spirit last week when I was praying… and I knew, in an instant, it was the voice of God.

Because the truth really is that sometimes we behave too safe in the way that we pray.  And I had fallen victim to praying it safe for a long time.

And yet God, in His goodness and in His kindness, would show me a different way than the pattern I had become all too familiar with.

It would come in the form of an answered prayer just the week before.

A friend had approached me to ask for prayer for her and her family.  It was a BIG request and one that would require great faith and new levels of trust.

And I would say yes to the request… and I would pray.
Diligently. 
Fervently.
Every single day.

But through it all I would not feel the urgency to “petition” as one without faith. I would, instead, come before the throne room with boldness and expectation.  And I would pray beyond the request itself.  The prayer for restoration became a prayer for radical encounter, redemption, a spiritual awakening, an awareness of more power in presence, communion in the midst of heartbreak, peace, and a refueled passion, purpose, and position.

Because this praying for others - it’s all an invitation to impart the greatest gift onto another soul.   And when we faithfully listen, the Holy Spirit often prompts us in different directions - knowing PRECISELY what is most needed.

And my heart would literally skip a beat when I saw the words penned to me by the friend just a couple weeks later.  She would explain, in detail, the restoration that she’d been a witness to, and we would both, together, celebrate the faithful Father who delights in making all things new!

And in that moment I would hear it in my spirit from The Spirit… “If you’re not going to ask for it, you’re not going to get it.  Think about those prayers I just answered!  The outcome may just have been dependent on your diligence and bended knee.  Without your earnest and faithful petitions, just maybe those things would not have had the chance to be answered.”

And I go to the scriptures - always - to look for biblical confirmation:

“You do not have because you do not ask God.”  James 4:2

“But if you remain in Me and My words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted!”  John 15:7

“Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.”  Matthew 7:7

“And this is the confidence that we have toward Him, that if we ask anything according to His will He hears us. “ 1 John 5:14

And so I start again.  Praising for all He’s done and Praying for all He has yet to do.

And I commit myself to praying earnestly and faithfully with gratitude - that I get to be used as a conduit for blessing to other people.  I can look ahead to His future faithfulness by remembering the testimony (that’s root word in the Hebrew text means “do again”) of His past faithfulness!

You answer the sacrifices offered on bended knees, God!

Your Focus Determines Your Forecast

Have you ever spent any amount of time with a negative person?
I don’t mean the occasional “complainer”… I would think that is descriptive of all of us to some degree.  But I mean a “chronic complainer.”  You know the one.  The person who simply cannot find joy in anything.  The person who consistently seems burdened by everything.  The person who finds fault and disgust in all situations.

And truth be told, being in close proximity to this kind of negativity is exhausting.  And painful.  And damaging.

Because it’s one thing to express an occasional disappointment, but it’s a dreadful disease to enunciate frequent disaster.

I was watching a story on Instagram the other day about a family who lives in the Nashville area, and they were discussing the affects of the tornado that hit that part of country, leaving a trail of destruction and devastation in it’s wake.

The man, who’s story I was watching, said that, for them, it was not a “sit back and pray for them” response, it was a “jump in and help” reaction that automatically overtook them.  As he was videoing his wife chopping trees, transporting resources, and cleaning debris, he said, “For us this is what ‘being the church’ means.”  For them, it was a choice: view the devastation with fear and animosity, or view the assault upon their city as an opportunity to “do good in the face of evil.”

1 Peter 3:11 says this, “…let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it.”

Being peace-seekers is what it means to look more like Jesus.  Oh how I love that it doesn’t just tell us to remove evil, but to REPLACE it with PEACE.

Hebrews 11:27 caught my eye the other day.  Out of nowhere, really, and at first glance relating nothing to this Nashville family’s story.

But take a look!
Hebrews 11:27 says this, “It was by faith that Moses left the land of Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger. He kept right on going because he kept his eyes on the One who is invisible.”

And it doesn’t take us long to see the evil all around us.  Sadly, I think we are more often prone to seeing what’s “wrong” over the many things that are “right.”  Unfortunately, many of us are disposed to seeing error, and what’s worse than seeing it, is speaking it.

And I would say it out loud during my prayer time the other day - “We’ve GOT to get better!”
Because our focus determines our forecast.
What we consistently gaze upon will eventually become the reality of the weather conditions we live in.
When we gaze upon the disadvantages, the forecast becomes disappointment.
When we gaze upon failures, the forecast becomes frustration.

But Moses lived differently.
And if he did… so can we!

“He kept right on going”… why?  “because he kept his eyes on the One who is invisible.”

We look into an election year with fear for what could be.
We look at a leader with irritation and loathing at what should be.

But when we do this… we look nothing like Jesus.
When we do this, we've taken our focus off of the wrong thing.
1 John 2:6 says, “Whoever says He (Jesus) abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which He (Jesus) walked.”

Moses made a decision to keep right on going and keep his eyes locked on the One who is still in control.  The One who never disappoints.

Oh how we’ve got to get this right.  It matters far more than we think.

Your focus determines your forecast.
What will it be?  The storm or The Shield?  The destroyer or The Defender?  The pain or the Peacemaker?

External circumstances cannot influence the one who’s eyesight is concentrated on Jesus.

My Highest Aim

Of all the ambitions King David had, one was greater than them all. One took precedence in his life above all others… and that was to know God and be known by Him.

Intimacy with the Father.

He says in Psalm 27:4, “The one thing I ask of the Lord - the one thing I seek the most - is to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life…”

Above everything else, David wanted communion with the Presence of God.
It was the highest aim of his life.
Because he knew that if he didn’t have that, he had nothing.

But the verse doesn’t end there.
“The one thing I ask of the Lord - the one thing I seek the most - is to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, delighting in the Lord’s perfections and meditating in His Temple.”

I love this.

Because our dear David knows that it’s not just God’s presence that brings about goodness and deliverance… but it’s our RESPONSE to that goodness and deliverance.

And how David commits Himself to responding is by DELIGHTING in Him, and MEDITATING on Him.

David demonstrates to us here that this relationship with Him is a co-laboring.
He extends to us the invitation of His presence… and we respond with delight and meditation.

The word "delight" means this = to gaze upon with great pleasure.
The word "meditate" means this = to seek, enlarge in thought, reflect, study.

And isn’t that just the way it works with Him?
 The more we have of Him - the more we want of Him?
Hunger is found in the pursuit of Jesus.
And it’s a strange dichotomy.
I heard it once described this way, “In the natural we get hungry by not eating. In the kingdom, we get hungry by eating.”

Hunger is a sign of spiritual health.

And David was hungry. His highest aim was not only to be known by God - but to KNOW God. He understood the pursuit of more of Him at any cost.

And so today my focus will shift.
In the asking for more of Him, I will commit myself to delighting and meditating on Him.
I will gaze upon Him with great pleasure, while seeking to enlarge my thoughts on Him.
This means locking eyes upon Him. Refusing to shift my attention in any other direction than where He’s standing. To consider His mercy, His love, His provision, His guidance… oh and the list goes on and on.

I must stay hungry for Him, and enjoy Him, while continuously longing for more of Him.

My highest aim is to know Him and be known by Him!

Honor

Daniel is such a powerful book. I tend to read it when I am going through a challenging season, as it gives me such renewed hope.

Daniel is an amazing example of a man who had great faith, wisdom, and endurance in the face of great uncertainty, enormous amounts of difficulty, and painful oppression.

Daniel 6 tells us about Daniels integrity and his success as an administrator who had been appointed by King Darius to supervise the high officers and protect the king’s interests.

Scripture tells us that because he had proven himself to the king, and because of Daniel’s great ability, the king was making plans to put him in a high position over the entire empire.

And this is where the story gets ugly.

The other administrators in the high council began searching for fault within Daniel’s life. However, every search for deficiency ended in failure. Scripture tells us that Daniel was, “…faithful, always responsible, and completely trustworthy.” (6:4)

So, knowing they couldn’t blame him for anything legitimate, they decided to form an alliance, while attacking the very faith Daniel stood so strongly on. They coerced King Darius into signing a law that strictly prohibited a person to pray to, “anyone divine or human” (verse 7), with the exception of the King, for the following thirty days.

The punishment? The accused would be thrown in to a den filled with ravenous lions.

When Daniel learned about this, the scriptures tell us that, “…he went home and knelt down as usual in his upstairs room. He prayed three times a day, just as he had always done, giving thanks to his God.” (verse 10)

Of course we know the rest of the story.
King Darius hears the news.
He’s deeply saddened, but must remain a man of his word.
He orders Daniel in the lions den.
For added measure of defense against escape, a stone is placed in the entryway.

The next day Darius finds Daniel in the den of lions completely unharmed, and is overcome with such joy, that he turns the tables, forcing the men who had brought the accusations against Daniel, along with their wives and children, into the lions den, where this time… the evil ones… were completely devoured.

Same den. Same lions. Different God.

Daniel’s words are extraordinary here.
Verse 21 says this, “Daniel answered, ‘Long live the king!’”

Four important words that might have changed everything.

Remember the king and his betrayal? His full support of the accusations? The fulfillment of a totally unrealistic law that he didn’t even want to sign in the first place?

Talk about irreverence and dishonor.
Talk about weakness and incompetence.

And yet, still, Daniel chose honor.
“Long live the king!”

Darius had been a heathen prince… an enemy to God’s people… and had collaborative efforts that aligned with the great enemy himself. YET Daniel showed him honor as a sovereign king.
Instead of belittling him, berating him, or using any means of retaliating hatred, He refused to dishonor the one the Lord had put in charge. He withdraws from any charge against him.

Ahh…

And so can it be with us? The Jesus people. A better way?

I wonder how differently things would look… how differently people would be… if the God-Fearing Jesus people rose up and deliberately chose a better way of living.

Perhaps we could begin to address all leaders and those in authoritative power with honor and respect. Maybe we could change the trajectory of our hate-filled scoiety by honoring those God has appointed for “such a time as this.”

Because the truth really is that we often become what those around us believe about us.

God called you and I worthy through we did nothing to deserve it.
1 Corinthians 1:26 says, “… think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards, not many were influential, not many were of noble birth.”

Let’s not believe the lie that says words don’t matter.
Words are FAR more powerful than we think.
Don’t buy into the the falsehood that respect is only earned, and that while we don’t have to honor the person, but we must honor the position.
It’s wrong thinking.
And it’s hurting us far more than we realize.
Choose to speak goodness over the ones who don’t deserve it. And then watch… just WATCH how God redeems and restores and reestablishes.

I strongly believe that He will not issue a redemptive solution until we learn the power of grace and honor.

I can honor despite evidence of worthiness.
Regardless of merit.
Not because they deserve it, but because God deserves to have ALL of my life to glorify Him.

Conscious and Unconscious

My daughter’s Senior Pastor at her church at Bethel in Redding, CA, has told this story many times, and it’s also been told of many who know him well.  During the evening when he is sound asleep he has been known to “talk out loud” and it’s often prayers he’s praying or worship he is uttering that he is not even conscious of.  He has said before that he is often “awaken in the night” praying.  By this he explains, “it’s not that I wake up TO pray, it’s that I literally awaken myself because I am ALREADY praying.”

Oh to be THAT conscious of God even when I am asleep!  It is the prayer of my heart since I heard of this great possibility.

And so I began the practice in my own life.  This sort of “deliberate” realigning of my thoughts in the night.  Lately when I have been awakened in the evening for whatever reason, I intentionally shift my focus to Him.  And I could feel myself doing it in the hospital room a few nights ago.  When I was having a hard time sleeping because of the loud commotion just outside of my room, and the beeping and buzzing noises within my own room, I found myself shifting my gaze on Him.  And even there I was able to align my thoughts to Him.  And in the dead of night I repeated the words over and over again, ‘Thank you Jesus!  Thank you for even this… if it draws me closer to You!”

I would think about this just days after studying in 2 Timothy, chapter 4.  Laying on a cold, dark jail cell that would be his last residence before his earthy demise, Paul was penning a letter to his spiritual son, Timothy, and he says, “The first time I was brought before the judge, no one came with me.  Everyone abandoned me.  BUT THE LORD stood with me and gave me strength.”

One of my commentaries says this, “It is recorded of a good man that on his last day he is passed in unconsciousness.”  The commentator is recalling a time when a man was asked on his deathbed if he was “thinking of Jesus today.”  To which he answered, “When I am conscious I am thinking of Jesus; when I am unconscious Jesus is thinking of me!”


Wow.

This is so good friends!

And I would think about any of us who are going through a trial of any kind.  Oh that we would live consciously aware of Him even then… no… especially then!

Psalm 17:15 says this, “Because I am righteous, I will see you. When I awake, I will see you face to face and be satisfied.”

“When I awake… I will see You face to face!”

Oh may it be said of us - - when we are awake we are thinking of Jesus.
And when it’s hard… when difficulty arises… or when sleep has come over us from in one way or another… that we would hold confident that He is thinking of us!  And caring for us.  And protecting us.  And providing for us!

So that one the moment we are AWAKEN from slumber… we see Him face to face and are satisfied. 

God Doubles!

The story of Job is difficult to read and likely, for many, even more difficult to interpret.  But it is such a rich and powerfully packed book of the bible that serves as a sort of guide for those of us aiming toward godliness as we learn to navigate rough waters this side of eternity.

And in the very end of the book - after all we have seen Job suffer through, and after the ungodly advice given to him by “friends” of his concerning his pain in unfortunate adversity, we discover a faithful and prayerful man, and a faithful and powerful God.

As the Lord burned in anger toward the two friends who misrepresented God’s purposes to His dearly beloved son, Job, we see, even still His great care and concern in the midst of His almighty sovereignty.  He says in chapter 42, verse 8, “My servant Job will pray for you, and I will accept his prayer on your behalf.  I will not treat you as you deserve, for you have not spoken accurately about Me as my servant Job has.”

 Because even in his discomfort and misfortune, Job remained filled with honesty and integrity in the eyes of the Lord.

In verse 10 we read, “When Job prayed for his friends, the Lord restored His fortunes.  In fact the Lord gave him twice as much as before!”

Upon his torture device of ill-treatment from “friends” and from ultimate suffering through devastating loss and grief, Job was restored and replenished… abundantly.
Ahh… and wasn't that, perhaps, a foreshadowing of the One named Jesus from Nazareth.. who prayed upon His very own torture device, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34)

My commentary says this about Job regarding the one simple prayer made for his friends, “There is nothing that pays so well as prayer, and the more difficult the prayer to make, the greater the reward for making it.”

Yes… we triumph over our trials and tantalizers by the relentless pursuit on bended knees!

And so what the enemy meant for harm… God actually used for good.
While Satan inflicted the blow, and while God granted permission for the affliction, It was our faithful, loving, and miracle-working God who used harm for a harvest!

Ahh… only God!

We see here that Job’s fortune was doubled.  My commentary says, “… in his (Job’s) afflictions, he may have received the greatest blessing from heaven.  But whatever be the form of God’s blessing, it is great and wonderful.  The Christian has more than a paradise regained.  The second Adam brings a kingdom of heaven that is more precious than the lost Eden.”

So all that Job had lost in his life… was all worth it in the end.  Because God is a God who doesn’t simply mend and patch up the broken life… for those who call on Him as their Savior and depend on His goodness and grace while pointing to Him with everything they have… He heals and renews and blesses with super abundant kindness.

He is God and He is good.

Praise to Him for doing immeasurably more than we could ever ask for or imagine! (Eph 3:20)

He Will Becuase He Has

Paul teaches us so much from the letters he wrote while in prison to his spiritual son, Timothy.

At the close of his second letter, found in the final chapter, we see a sort of “farewell” message from our teacher.

Falsely accused and sitting in a cold, dark prison cell, Paul pens the letters that should make our heart leap.  He says this, “But the Lord stood with me and gave me strength so that I might preach the Good News in its entirety for all the Gentiles to hear.  And He rescues me from certain death.  Yes, and the Lord will deliver me from every evil attack and will bring me safely into His heavenly Kingdom.”  (verse 17-18)

Oh the two things that we can assuredly take from these passages are this:
- Paul’s celebration of past rescue.
- Paul’s confidence of future redemption.

Paul had been a witness to many hardships. 
He had been grossly misinterpreted, bitterly accused, viciously attacked, mocked, ridiculed, misunderstood, ignored, hated, and now finds himself at the end of his days faced with one of the most important missions of his life… to leave a legacy that would ensure the continuation of the Gospel message he had committed himself to for so long.

And above all else, he longs to leave us with these two departing thoughts:
God has been good and faithful and He will continue to be good and faithful.

I can imagine this dramatic exit just before he departs from his earthy shell…

“Oh if there is just ONE MORE THING I can leave you with, Timothy, it’s this: The same God who stands with me now, is the same God who has rescued me, and is the same God who will deliver me!"  “All glory to God forever and ever.”  (verse 18b)

Paul’s life was spilled out for the sake of Jesus Christ… quite literally.

Ahh… He knows… that Jesus has been and will be the only resource he shall ever need.
And on the claim of past rescue, he can cite future redemption.
Because He has been my God… He will be my God.

Paul has great expectations to be delivered, and he holds it by the confident means of deliverance he has already been afforded. 

It’s no surprise that the Old Testament word, “testimony” actually carries in it this idea to “do again.”  So when we give the testimony of all we have seen God do for us, we are actually making a prophetic declaration that He WILL do it again.  And while we certainly have no authority to order His hand, we can be certain that we know His heart - and He is always faithful to perform what will bring us ultimate good and bring Him ultimate glory.

And so Paul makes his prayer into a promise - God has and God will.

Oh what have you seen Him do for your friends?  Count the many ways He has shown grace when you didn’t deserve it.  Consider the circumstances He has rescued you from, and the ways He has faithfully redeemed you from the most challenging difficulties.

And in the close of Paul’s life… knowing death (by martyrdom) is soon to befall him, he stands confidently to say, “He will deliver me from evil.”  He will.  Not He might, or He would like to, or even I believe He will… simply and only, “He WILL deliver me from evil.”  Because Paul knew that even if what was to come would come… that even if the sword He asked to be removed would be the sword that fell upon his neck and ended his earthly life… that even then nothing could separate him from Jesus.  He will, “bring me safely into His kingdom.”  (verse 18)

And Jesus knew it well, too.  This assurance of deliverance from the utmost of evil.  Not because He wouldn't be asked to “drink the bitterness of the cup” that was issued to His lips, but because the act of drinking the poisonous potion was the very act that provided salvation for one and all.

THIS is deliverance.

And it is our past rescue that we can confidently declare our present and future redemption!

He is God… and is He GOOD!