In the Morning . . .

It’s still pretty dark outside as I sit here at my desk. My window is open and I hear the birds greeting the first light of the dawn. I’ve been rising early for many years. I often wake up before my 4:30 alarm these days. I love early mornings – everyone is still asleep and it’s my quiet time with Jesus. And coffee. These mornings set the tone for the rest of my day as I fill my mind and heart with truth and wisdom. I don’t know what the day will hold, but the Lord does and He guides me to a word that He knows I will need before I lay my head back down at the end of the day.

This morning His word speaks deep into my soul: “Let the morning bring me word of Your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in You” (Ps 142:8). On it’s own this is a sweet sentiment. In fact, it’s about to go up on the wall over my desk. But if you read the entire Psalm (and I encourage you to do so), you will notice that David is in a dark place. He is being pursued by his enemy and he says “My spirit grows faith within me; my heart within me is dismayed” (v. 4). He is running out of hope.

I get it, David. This Psalm resonates with my own aching heart. It would be so easy to slip into despair and hopelessness right now – and the truth is, I have over the past few weeks. Like Peter, I let my eyes drift from the One who called me to the waves that threaten me and I soon feel the waters start to overtake me. What hope do I have when I’m drowning? The same hope that David had: the unfailing love of God and His faithfulness. David wisely did two things: he cried out to God (vv. 1-2) and he meditated on what God has already done on his behalf (v. 5). And so must you and I.

David asked for direction (v. 8), rescue (v. 9), and to know God’s will (v. 10). That’s what I’m asking for today. As His child, you can too. Beloved, whatever comes today, God wants to remind you of His unfailing love and assure you that you can trust Him. His good Spirit will lead you on level ground (v. 10). You have His Word on it.

Do You Believe?

What does it mean to believe? And in what should we believe? Is it enough to believe that there is a God? A lot of people agree to the presence of some supreme being in the universe, and many will call him God. And many believe that a man named Jesus taught the ways of God and exemplified His heart of love, compassion, and grace. But what makes one’s belief right or wrong? John explained the difference: “Anyone who does not believe God has made Him out to be a liar because he has not believed the testimony God has given about His Son” (1 John 5:10).

The heart of the Christian faith is to believe what God has said about Jesus Christ. God declared, “This is my Son” (Matt 3:17: 17:5), and that gave divine weight to everything Jesus said and did. John said that when men reject Jesus and His words, they are saying that God is not truthful nor trustworthy. When I say I am a Christian, I am not making a statement about my assent to the truths of Christianity; I am making a statement about God’s trustworthiness through His Son.

When I was younger in my faith, I thought my salvation depended on how hard I believed. It finally dawned on me that it wasn’t my dogged determination to hang on that saved me. It was God’s faithfulness to do what He promised to do. God said that Jesus is His Son, that His death was sufficient to cover all my sins, and that His resurrection ensures my eternal destiny. I believe what God said. It is the foundation of my faith.

Beloved, if you believe what God has said about Jesus, you are blessed in every way; for this life and life eternal. You are blessed because you stand on the confidence of God’s testimony, not on the traditions of men. You are blessed because “you will see the glory of God” (John 11:40). Your faith will be made sight and your hope in Christ will be confirmed. In heaven’s chronicles, your name will be recorded among the great saints of human history, and you will be commended with those who pleased God by their faith. What a blessing it is to believe!

When You See Him

After Jesus’ resurrection some of the disciples, at a loss for what they should do, decided to go fishing (Jn 21:1-3). It was what they had always known; they were fishermen by trade before they started following the Lord. You might remember that Jesus called them to ministry by telling them He would make them “fishers of men” (Matt 4:19). So off to the boat they went, but their fishing expedition was fruitless, they fished all night but “caught nothing” (Jn 21:3) As they were returning to shore a man stood on the water’s edge. He called out “Friends haven’t you any fish?” (v. 5). When they said no, He told them “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some” (v. 6). And the catch was so large they couldn’t haul them in.

That was when John realized who the man was – “It is the Lord!” (v. 7). Peter abandoned the boat and jumped into the water to get to Jesus. When the crew and the boat reached the shore they all had breakfast together (v. 12). The Scripture says, “None of the disciples dared ask Him, ‘Who are you?’ They knew it was the Lord” (v. 12). This passage goes on to detail how Jesus reinstated Peter after the disciple’s betrayal and that is one of my favorite accounts in the Bible. But something different stood out to me this morning.

Before He called out to them from the shore, John said, “The disciples did not realize that it was Jesus” (v. 4). Their eyes were opened after the miraculous haul. Fishing then was very hard work and a fruitless night of fishing would be exhausting and discouraging. I can just imagine these weary fishermen coming in with downcast faces and bent shoulders. Much like you and me sometimes. Life can be so hard. Exhausting. Discouraging.

And then something happens and we realize “That’s Jesus!” The disciples had no idea that it was Him. Until after the miracle. We don’t either until He shows Himself in glory and power. This may be a difficult season for you. You may be exhausted and discouraged. But Jesus is there and He’s about to pull off the miracle you need. You may not see Him yet Beloved, but keep scanning the shore. Keep looking up. He said He’ll be with you always (Matt 28:20) and He never breaks a promise.

Who Will Be Your Master?

One of the great scourges in U.S. history is slavery. It was a common way of life (and not limited to the South) but often a horrific way of life. We don’t like to think about slavery, but it was a reality that cannot be erased or knocked down. It is also a teaching point as it gives us a true vision of how sin treats men and women.

Paul addressed slavery in the context of our spiritual lives in Romans 6. He said we are either slaves to sin or slaves to righteousness. Slaves had no say in how they lived. They went where they were told, did what they were told, and operated at the discretion of their master. In the context of this passage, Paul said the same thing applied to either sin or righteousness. The difference in the life of a slave was in the master. Sin is a tyrannical, wicked master bent on inflicting as much abuse as possible on the slave before finally paying them their full wages: death (6:23).

But those who are in Christ Jesus are slaves to righteousness. Yes, still slaves, but to a much different master. A master that treats the slave with grace and kindness and cares for and about them. While the wages of sin is death, the gift of God to the righteous slave is eternal life (still v. 23). That in itself is enough cause for Joy, but look what else our Master gives us: the resurrection from the dead (v. 5), grace (vs. 14-15), holiness (vs. 19, 22), and strangely. freedom (vs. 7, 18, 22).

In verse14 Paul wrote: “Sin shall not be your master . . .” I’ve always understood that as a command: “Sin must not be your master” but taken in the full context I believe it is a word of assurance that sin will not be our master. The KJV renders the verse “Sin will no longer be your master.” Twice Paul said “You have been set free from sin” (vs. 18, 22). That’s good news for those of us who bear the scars of our former master.

Paul frequently tells us that we are not who we once were because we belong to a new Master now. You need to remind yourself of that every time your old slave driver comes calling. Beloved, you belong to righteousness now. Sin has no claim on you.

Go To The Word

Everyone seems to have an opinion these days and we all want to be heard.  As a blogger, I am one of the hundreds of thousands – probably even millions – of people on the world-wide-web trying to get a word out to the world. Christian bloggers, of which I am one, seem to be the most overcrowded segment of the species. So, with so many voices out there, to whom should you listen? Who should you trust?

Isaiah was God’s prophet prior to the Israelites going into Babylonian captivity. He had been called and anointed by God to speak on the Lord’s behalf. But just as it is today, there were a lot of people saying a lot of things. But were they reliable? Were they true? Were they clear and righteous messages for God’s people? Those are the same questions we need to be asking today.

In Isaiah’s time, the ungodly messengers were consulting mediums and spiritists who “consulted the dead on behalf of the living.” They whispered and muttered nonsense because that is what the people wanted (Is. 8:19). Paul warned Timothy that men would “gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear” (2 Tim. 4:3). If you listen to the popular messages coming from many pulpits (books, blogs, podcasts, etc.) today, you will hear much the same.

Paul told Timothy to “Preach the Word” (2T 4:2) and that agrees perfectly with Isaiah’s admonition: “To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, they have no light of dawn” (Is. 8:20). And that brings me to my favorite people, the Bereans, who took Paul’s messages and “examined the Scriptures to see if what Paul said was true” (Acts 17:11).

If there is one hill I will die on, it is this: Do not depend on what others say about God. Not even me. Check out every word against the One Word of Truth. You MUST be a student of the Scriptures yourself. That doesn’t mean you have to go to seminary. It means you have to spend time in this divinely inspired Book, searching out truth, wisdom, and understanding and aligning your heart to it. Then you will know how to spot the errors, lies, and false witnesses in the world. Beloved, I implore you – study God’s Word as if your life depended on it. Because it does.

In God’s Eyes

Who do you see when you look in the mirror? Someone who has their life pulled together, or someone who’s life is coming apart at the seams? Do you see a person full of potential, or full of regrets? How do you think others see you? More importantly, how do you think God sees you?

Gideon was a man who saw himself and his people as helpless, hopeless, and small before their enemy. I encourage you to grab your Bible and read the account in Judges 6: 11-16 (The whole story of Gideon runs through chapters 6-8). A stranger wandered up to rest in the shade of a tree beside a winepress. (A winepress is a below-ground pool where juice was extracted from the grapes.) Gideon is in the winepress threshing wheat. Wheat was usually threshed on a high spot where the breeze could catch the chaff and blow it away while the heavier grain falls back to the ground. There’s not much breeze down in a winepress, but this tells you how fearful Gideon was. He was down there hiding from the Midianites.

The stranger calls out to him “The Lord is with you mighty warrior” (v. 12). I imagine Gideon spun around looking for the person he was addressing. What Gideon doesn’t realize is the stranger is the Angel of the Lord, and he was calling Gideon by the name the Lord had given him. Mighty Warrior. The angel tells Gideon that God is appointing him to deliver the Israelites from their enemy. Gideon isn’t buying it. “How can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh and I am the least in my family” (v. 15). Gideon sees only his weakness and smallness. He compares himself to the enemy and knows he doesn’t measure up. But Jehovah God sees Gideon as the man He will empower to accomplish great things for Israel. God promises Gideon “I will be with you and you will strike down all the Midianites” (v. 16). And that’s the whole point. God isn’t looking at what Gideon is or what Gideon can do; He is looking at what He will do through Gideon, at what He had destined Gideon to become – a mighty warrior.

Beloved, nothing and no one defines you but God. Whatever your past has been, whatever other voices have said about you, whatever the enemy has tried to tell you about yourself, hear this above anything else: You are who God says you are. And He has said “You are mine.”

Acts: Holy Boldness

Just as Jesus was a praying teacher, the first church was a praying church. After their arrest and confrontation with the Sanhedrin, Peter and John returned to the gathering of believers and replayed the whole event, including the demand that they stop speaking in the name of Jesus (Acts 4:18). The people immediately “raised their voices together in prayer to God” (v. 24). This would be a good time for you to grab your Bible and read Acts 4:23-31.

One thing that has always stood out to me about the prayers in the Bible is they were unlike my own. My prayers tend to be whiny and ramble on and on.  The prayers of God’s people were almost always God-centered, concise, and simple. Let’s look at this prayer. First, they laid a strong foundation declaring God’s sovereignty, power, and authority (vs. 24-25). Only then did they present their request to God (v. 25b-27). They remembered that men have plotted against God for generations – this current dilemma was nothing new to Him. They declared that God’s power and purpose overrode the enemy’s scheming. “They did what your power and will had decided beforehand should happen” (v. 28).

Then they laid the matter before the Lord and got read to get back to the work God had given them. “Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness” (v. 29). They put the battle – and their enemies – in God’s hands and carried on with the divine mission. They asked for boldness to continue doing what got them in trouble in the first place. That ought to be a lesson for us in this evil generation.

Then something remarkable happened. “After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly” (v. 31). Why are our churches not being shaken (up)? Why are we not speaking the word of God boldly today? I believe it is because we are praying in fear, not in faith. I’m guilty. I find that I’m praying more about what can go wrong than what God can do right.  And too often I’m praying that life will get easier, not that I will get bolder. It’s no wonder the Spirit isn’t shaking me up.

It is right and good to present our problems and struggles to the Lord in prayer. But then we need to ask for the power and boldness to continue in our divine calling. Beloved, it’s time to stop shaking in fear and start shaking in the Spirit.

Little Lost Lamb

I would like to say that I have never wandered from the side of Jesus my Good Shepherd. I have always been a good and faithful member of His flock. I have stayed close and always come when He calls. I would like to say that, but it would be a lie. I have wandered long and far and found myself in some very scary, ugly places. I am so thankful that my Shepherd comes looking for me. Every time.

Jesus told a parable about a lost sheep and a shepherd. He said that when a shepherd loses a sheep, he will leave all his other sheep and “go after the lost sheep until he finds it” (Luke 15:4). And when he finds it, he scolds it and berates it all the way back home. He sends the little sheep to her room and tells all his friends how stupid and rebellious the sheep is. NO! “He joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep” (Luke 15:5-6).

Some of us wanderers think of the Lord in the first example. Yes, Jesus will come looking for me, but when He finds me there’s going to be heck to pay. I don’t see that anywhere in this parable. In fact, I don’t see that anywhere in Scripture. From Genesis to Revelation God is a seeking-the-lost, forgiving-the-rebel, celebrating-the-return Father. Hear this loud and clear, God doesn’t rescue you and me begrudgingly or with even a trace of anger or impatience. David said, “He rescued me because he delighted in me” (Ps 18:19). Did you see how Jesus described the shepherd? “He JOYFULLY puts the sheep on his shoulders.” God loves to rescue His little lambs.

You and I are never going to get through this life without needing to be rescued. Most of the time we don’t intend to wander off, we’re just grazing and not paying attention to where the lush grass is taking us. Beloved, if you find yourself far from your Shepherd’s side today, be assured that He is coming to find you – not to punish or berate you, but to put you on His shoulders and celebrate you home!

Even the black sheep.

This Little Light of Mine

The world today is on a mission to eradicate Christ. But that’s nothing new. The religious leaders tried to shut Jesus’ disciples down – or up – depending on how you look at it. Acts 4 and 5 record how the Sanhedrin gave them “strict orders not to teach in His name” (5:28) and imprisoned and flogged them for refusing to do so. The first martyr, Stephen was stoned for his passionate testimony. For centuries, thousands of men and women have died for the name of Jesus and His gospel. They still do. The ancient church father, Tertullian said, “The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church.”

Today laws are enacted to keep Christ out of the culture, away from public places, and shut up inside the walls of the church. But that is impossible because believers carry His Spirit with them wherever they go. Jesus promised to send the Holy Spirit, not just to hover over us like He did at creation (Gen 1:2), but to “live with you and be in you” (Jn 14:17). When you go to school, the Spirit of Christ goes with you. When you go to work, the Spirit is there in you. When you go to the mall or the gym or stand in the public square, you bear the Spirit of the very God that has been deemed inappropriate, offensive, and in many places, illegal.

As long as Jesus tarries His people will bring His Spirit into dark places and sad places and places where the devil has staked a claim. And that will not make us popular. The Lord said, the Spirit “will convict the world of sin and righteousness and judgment” (Jn 16:8). That means believers don’t have to stand on a street corner with a bullhorn and call down fire and brimstone on sinners.  The writer of Hebrews said that Noah “condemned the world by his faith” (11:7). Just living uncompromised godly lives stands out in stark contrast to the wicked world around us.

But don’t fret. Whatever laws man may pass have no bearing on where God belongs. David said, “The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it” (Ps 24:1). He will not be denied the full reign of His creation. Beloved, let His Spirit shine wherever you are.

Trust

I recently wrote about trusting God with all our hearts (I’ll post a link to the original in the comments).  But the question that keeps coming up is how do we develop trust? If trust is so important to the Christian walk, how do we learn to trust? Is there a study we can do or a class we can take? Well, sort of. It’s called life. Trust comes as we walk through our lives.

There’s a verse that I’ve been staring at all morning – or it may be more accurate to say it’s been staring at me. David wrote, “You made me trust in You” (Ps 22:9). I can’t get that out of my head. I think there are several people in the Bible and in the history of the church that can say that as well. “You made me trust in you.” It is the theme of my life.

David was just a shepherd, the youngest son of Jesse – nobody special. Except to God who had big plans for little David. Plans that would take him to the throne of Israel. But first, he had to learn to trust God. So he faced down a giant, was hounded by a jealous king and a crazy man, had to rescue his family from a kidnapping, had his men threaten to stone him, was betrayed by his wife and his son, had an affair with a married woman then had her husband killed and lost the child of that adulterous union, and fought continuously to keep his throne secure.

David didn’t see those things as cause for despair. He saw them as God’s training ground where he learned to trust in the Lord. God allowed – or put him in – situations that demanded he either trust the sovereign providence and faithfulness of Jehovah or give up. You can read his story in Scripture and see that he did not give up on God.

I’m in a very hard season that is much the same. Either I trust in the Lord right now or I give up. But all the struggles and trials in my life – and there have been some doozies – have taught me that trust is the right answer. It is the only answer. He’s not failed me one time before and He’s not about to now.

Beloved, I don’t know your story, but I know that everything, everything, everything in your life to this point has been about teaching you to trust God. And this one is too. Don’t give up. Press in closer. God will not let you down.