Giver of Life

II Samuel 14:14 - "For we will surely die and are like water spilled on the ground which cannot be gathered up again. Yet God does not take away life, but plans ways so that the banished one will not be cast out from him."

God is the Great Creator, not a destroyer. It is in His nature to create, restore, and redeem. The devil will always seek for us to run from God when His arms are always open so that we might run to Him.

Isolation equals destruction and the enemy is good at getting God's children to do it. However, no matter what we have done or where we have been in our self-banishment, God wants us back. He puts no qualifications on our return, but tells us to come exactly as we are and surrender to Him. May we all draw near the Throne of Grace today and partake of His great mercy!

Preparation for Life

I Peter 1:13 - "Therefore, prepare your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ."

Preparation always involves planning. If we believe we can live as Christ's followers without understanding the need to turn our gaze upon Jesus for our strength, then we are deceived. A prepared plan to overcome involves taking every thought captive to the obedience of Jesus.

It is impossible, beloved of God, to stumble through life without being vigilant about the schemes of the devil. Once we set our minds on the Lord, our emotions will follow. As a result, our hope will be steadfast toward Christ's revelation in our lives. May we keep standing firm, turning our gaze upon the Beloved. There is only hope in Him.

Painful Relief

Job 6:10 - “But it is still my consolation, and I rejoice in unsparing pain, that I have not denied the words of the Holy One."

Few of us have experienced loss such as Job. Yet, he was able to say that he rejoiced in "unsparing pain." This boggles the natural mind to comprehend how Job could praise God in the midst of such calamity as losing his family and health. The secret lies in the second part of this verse. To the degree we embrace or deny "the words of the Holy One" in our day to day walk with the Lord, will be to the degree we understand embracing the pain of loss.

Rejoicing is different than joy. The former allows the latter to flow unreservedly. However, without joy our rejoicing will soon dry up, having lost the power of its Source. Those who possess the joy of the Lord through God's presence (Psalm 16:11), cannot avoid its escape through rejoicing. We must first know God through His word and allow the knowledge of the Holy One to teach us to embrace loss as He did. The Father's relationship with His Son in death is our prime example. We should understand there is indeed a great reward on the other side of the pain of suffering if we will but trust in God.

Godly Pride

II Chronicles 17:6 - "He took great pride in the ways of the LORD and again removed the high places and the Asherim from Judah."

Are we proud of Jesus? It is one thing to bring a bible to work and place it on our desk, or to display a bumper sticker on our cars. However, are we living out what we proclaim? Do we fear the Lord rather than fearing what others think? Saying we are a Christian yet not behaving like one is worse than hypocrisy, it is treason against our Lord. To partake of gossip or to listen to an off-color joke is to engage in idolatrous behavior. The writer of Chronicles goes on to say in verse 10 how the "dread of the Lord was on all the kingdoms around Judah so they did not make war against Jehoshaphat."

Have we created an air of "dread" with those we know who are unbelievers? Or do they feel comfortable behaving worldly because they feel unchallenged in our presence? We can accept all men with love but they should also know our boundaries and what we deem acceptable. If we are not creating conviction through the Holy Spirit in our relationships, then we should possibly do a self-examination. When we get right with God, the Holy Spirit within us will once again lift up the standard of Jesus and remove the "high places" that seek to separate us from Him.

The Eyes of the Lord

II Chronicles 16:9 - "For the eyes of the Lord move to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His. You have acted foolishly in this. Indeed, from now on you will surely have wars.”

While the first part of this verse is commonly quoted, the second half gives it relevance and context. Asa had trusted the Lord earlier in his kingship and defeated a million Ethiopians. Now, he was being rebuked for choosing man's help over God's. Like Asa, we may have sensed a greater desperation at one time and we saw greater victory. Now, we may not see the need to trust God so implicitly, but would rely on our own scheming. However, there is only one way to please the Lord and that is in weakness. There is no need to proclaim our lack of strength to God for His eyes diligently search the earth for those whose heart is surrendered.

Are we warring with ourselves and others? Have we lost the peace of God within our lives due to pride of what we can accomplish without the Lord? For Asa, the die was cast. However, for us it is never too late as long as we humble ourselves. His eyes search, diligently, hoping to support a heart desiring only the peace He can give.

Clouds

Matthew 17:5 - "While he was still speaking, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and behold, a voice out of the cloud said, 'This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased; listen to Him!'"

We might hope for a cloudless day when Jesus is transfigured before us during those wonderful moments of clarity. We may desire the vision He gives to be as bright and clear as the sky above. However, the Lord comes in no other way except in clouds. If we are experiencing a mountaintop epiphany with the Lord, we can be sure there will be clouds to hide His complete counsel from us. Otherwise, if we could see clearly without anything impeding our spiritual view, we would become proud and haughty. As a result, we might very well abort God’s vision in our lives.

The clouds are a blessing, for out of them the Lord speaks His wisdom and His direction so we can walk out His will in the valley below. Is the Lord giving you a time of transfiguration? Enjoy the mountaintop and the clouds that go with it! Are you still in the valley, desiring that moment of revelation that only He can give? Be patient, for the Lord allows all of His beloved time to spend with our heads in the clouds. May we not seek the mountaintop, but embrace it when it comes along with the blessings of spiritual clouds.

Lost and Found

Matthew 16:25 - "For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it."

Losing something generally means we no longer care about it. Things we hold dear we usually guard with the utmost care. Whose life are we guarding today? Are we a lifeguard for our old sinful life, or do we cherish the life of Christ within us? The old life will truly be lost if we do the latter. No longer will we try to reclaim it from the spiritual graveyard where we left it before our rebirth. Instead, we will forget the place of our burial, never to dig up the old man again. Lives clad with the grave clothes of self will now be robed in righteousness.

May what has become lost stay lost and what has been found in Christ remain in our hearts forever.