Monthly Archives: March 2016

March 17, 2016 · 5:30 AM

Ruth’s Vow

  
Most every one of us are familiar with Ruth’s vow given in Ruth 1:16-17. Ruth said to Naomi, “Don’t ask me to leave you! Let me go with you. Wherever you go, I will go; wherever you live, I will live. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God. Wherever you die, I will die, and that is where I will be buried. May the Lord’s worst punishment come upon me if I let anything but death separate me from you!” (GNT)

Ruth perfectly demonstrates what it means to leave your father and mother and cleave to your spouse. I know that scripture was for men, but here Ruth does it. When her husband died, she clung to her husband’s family still because she knew that Ruth had no one left in the world. It may have been out of respect for her husband, it may have been done because she didn’t like her parents, or because she truly loved NaomI. I believe it was the last one, but we don’t really know.

No matter what, it’s the depth of her vow that draws us to this story. To me, it’s the same vow and devotion we should enter into with Jesus. In II Corinthians 2:2-4, Paul says that we, the Church, are like a bride engaged to Christ. He doesn’t want us to be a bride like Eve who was deceived and corrupted who will “abandon your full and pure devotion to Christ.” He doesn’t want us to be easily deceived or to turn back to the life we once knew. We are committed to Christ the was a spouse is committed. Jesus deserves our full devotion.

Just as it’s wrong to cheat on your spouse, it’s wrong for us as believers to cheat on Jesus by going back to sinning. If you have accepted Jesus as your Lord, you have taken the vow to go where He goes, live where He lives, till death do you part I believe if we as Christians began to show that kind of commitment in our Christianity, we could change the world. If we could leave this world and cleave to Him, the depth of our commitment to our vow to Christ would be just as compelling as the story of Ruth and would draw in those looking for something real.

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March 16, 2016 · 5:41 AM

Don’t Retreat

  
In Judges 11, the people of Israel made Jephthah their ruler out of fear of the Ammonites. The king of Ammon told the Israelites that they had stolen his people’s land 300 years before when they came out of Egypt and he wanted it back. Jephthah replied that the Israelites wanted to pass through that land peaceably, but were denied. The Ammonite king attacked them first and they retaliated. Then in verse 23 he said, “So you see, it was the LORD, the God of Israel, who took away the land from the Amorites and gave it to Israel. Why, then, should we give it back to you?” (NLT)

I love the question, “Why should we give it back to you?” In our lives, we have fought to move forward. We have struggled at times to gain ground, to climb out of holes we’ve been in. It’s never easy to move forward after you’ve been defeated and have been in retreat. Each of us have been there in life. We’ve lost ground, and then we’ve gained it back over time as we continue to move forward with our lives.

Over time, we can forget how truly difficult the struggle was to move forward. I remember the moment that I decided that I wasn’t giving up any more ground. I wrote “The bottom” on my calendar, and decided that I would no longer go backwards. I determined that no matter how hard it was, I would crawl out of the hole I found myself in. I refused to go down any further in my life. I had hit the bottom and it was time to advance.

So why now, years later, would I give up ground I have already won? Why would I allow myself to go back into that hole? The enemy wants each of us to go back in there. He wants to get us back into that dark place where we once were. But we have already been given the victory by God. It was He who led us out of the darkness into His marvelous light. So don’t give up land that God has given you. Refuse to go back into the dark hole the enemy wants to keep you in. Don’t give up ground already won. God is still on your side and will fight for you if you ask Him to.

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March 15, 2016 · 5:30 AM

No More Hiding

  
I always enjoy reading about Gideon. There is so much to glean from him and how God used him. At the time, Israel was being bullied by the Midianites. When their crops would grow, the Midianites would trample them. They would also steal their livestock so they had no meat to eat. It was a scary time to be an Israelite. Even Gideon was hiding when God called him a mighty warrior. He couldn’t see how he was a mighty warrior or that God was with him because of what was going on in Israel.

In Judges 6:14-15, the conversation continued, “Then the LORD turned to him and said, ‘Go with the strength you have, and rescue Israel from the Midianites. I am sending you!’ ‘But Lord,’ Gideon replied, ‘how can I rescue Israel? My clan is the weakest in the whole tribe of Manasseh, and I am the least in my entire family!’” (NLT) Not only did he feel like God wasn’t with him, he thought of himself as a nobody from nowhere.

God doesn’t care where you’re from, how unimportant you think you are, or what your circumstances look like. He doesn’t pick His leaders that way. God looks at the posture of your heart and your availability. You will never have the capability on your own to accomplish what He’s calling you to. However, with His help, you will be the mighty warrior He sees in you and is calling out. It takes faith and courage to come out of hiding in order to be all that God has called you to be.

Gideon had to come out of the wine press if he was going to lead Israel against the Midianites. You’re going to have to come out of where you’re hiding too so God can accomplish His will. He won’t force you out. You have to choose to step out. He has already spoken to you. He has already called you more than you are. It’s time to quit making excuses and be who God called you to be. If you do, God’s promise to you is found in verse 16. The Lord said to him, “I will be with you.”

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March 14, 2016 · 5:30 AM

Daily Declaration

To me, one of the most important declarations in the Bible was made on Joshua 25:15. Joshua, who was the leader of Israel, was reminding the people of all God had done for them. He told them of the blessings that were promised to those who followed God’s ways. He also spoke of the consequences of choosing to disobey His commands. After that he said, “As for me and my family, we will serve the Lord” (NLT).

Joshua couldn’t speak for everyone just because he was their leader. Each person had to make their own decision on how they would live. There’s only two ways really. One is in obedience to God’s ways and the other is disobedience. There’s not a half and half. No one else can choose it for you either. Each one of us have to come to the point in our lives when we declare our independence from our sinful nature and pledge our allegiance to God.

Galatians 5:17 says, “The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions.” Joshua understood this war that goes on in each one of us. He knew that he was susceptible to failing, that’s why he made the declaration.

Today, you and I fight the same battle. Some days we win. Some days we lose. When I lose, I fall back on Romans 8:1-2. It says, “So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death.” We have been freed from the power of sin, but not from our sinful nature. We must keep declaring, no matter how bad or how many times we fail, that we will serve the Lord. 

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March 11, 2016 · 5:30 AM

Get Some Rest

  
With Spring Break coming up, the vacation season will begin. Vacations are meant to be a time of rest and recharging, but how many times do we come back from vacation tired? We typically say, “I need a vacation after my vacation.” It’s good to do things on vacation, but not at the expense of giving your body and mind the rest it needs to recharge. There has to be some balance. We weren’t made to go, go, go 24/7/365.

Even God took a day of rest after creating the universe and everything in it. He understands the importance of rest. In fact, He mandated that we take time to rest. It’s in the Ten Commandments after all. Throughout the Bible, we are encouraged to find rest. God knows we are unable to fulfill our calling and our responsibilities when we are burned out.

To help remind us to get some rest, here are some verses in the Bible concerning it.

1. God has told his people, “Here is a place of rest; let the weary rest here. This is a place of quiet rest.” But they would not listen.

Isaiah 28:12 NLT

2. Work six days and rest the seventh. Stop working even during plowing and harvesting.

Exodus 34:21 MSG

3. Now, God has offered us the promise that we may receive that rest he spoke about. Let us take care, then, that none of you will be found to have failed to receive that promised rest.

Hebrews 4:1 GNT

4. Return to your rest, O my soul, for the Lord has dealt bountifully with you.

Psalm 116:7 AMP

5. The LORD is my shepherd; I have all that I need. He lets me rest in green meadows; he leads me beside peaceful streams. He renews my strength. He guides me along right paths, bringing honor to his name.

Psalms 23:1-3 NLT

6. There were so many people coming and going that Jesus and his disciples didn’t even have time to eat. So he said to them, “Let us go off by ourselves to some place where we will be alone and you can rest a while.”

Mark 6:31 GNT

7. It is useless for you to work so hard from early morning until late at night, anxiously working for food to eat; for God gives rest to his loved ones.

Psalms 127:2 NLT

8. Be still and rest in the Lord; wait for Him and patiently lean yourself upon Him; fret not yourself because of him who prospers in his way, because of the man who brings wicked devices to pass.

Psalm 37:7 AMP

9. As it is, however, there still remains for God’s people a rest like God’s resting on the seventh day.

Hebrews 4:9 GNT

10. Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.

Matthew 11:28-30 MSG

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March 10, 2016 · 5:30 AM

Crazy Faith

  
One of my favorite stories in the Bible is found in Joshua 10. Joshua led the Israelites into war against five kings. As they were fighting, God threw hailstones from the heavens and killed more men than the Israelites combined. The battle continued to rage, but the daylight was going to end. That’s when Joshua stopped, looked up into heaven, and said, “Let the sun stand still over Gibeon, and the moon over the valley of Aijalon” (Joshua 10:12 NLT). The next verse says the sun stood still until Israel defeated their enemies.

Can you imagine the kind of boldness, courage, and faith it took to make such a request? This is one of the greatest miracles of the Bible. God paused time so that Joshua could defeat his enemies. I love it when God shows off like this. To me, it’s Him saying, “If you can think it, I can do it. All you have to do is ask.” The problem is that I feel like I’m bothering God when I ask for something crazy like this. But God is sitting there wanting me to stretch my faith and ask Him for the unthinkable.

Ephesians 3:20 is a familiar verse to most Christians, and I love how the Amplified Bible writes this verse. It says, “Now to Him Who, by (in consequence of) the [action of His] power that is at work within us, is able to [carry out His purpose and] do superabundantly, far over and above all that we [dare] ask or think [infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, hopes, or dreams].” God can do infinitely more than your wildest prayers, craziest hopes, and unrealistic dreams. He’s just waiting for you to trust Him enough to do it.

Many times I wonder if I’m asking God for enough, is my faith big enough, or do I trust Him enough. Joshua asked the sun to stand still, a widow asked Elisha to bring her son back to life, and Peter asked to get out of the boat. All three were granted because they were bold and courageous enough to ask. All three had the faith in God to answer their requests. If God is able to do exceeding, abundantly above all we could ever ask or think, I believe it’s time we had a faith that’s crazy enough to ask for those things.

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March 9, 2016 · 5:30 AM

Seeing The Supernatural 

  
Whenever we take teams to Haiti, on the first day, we ask them to keep their eyes open for Jesus. Each night after that, we ask the question, “Where did you see Jesus today?” I look forward each day to hearing where team members saw Him. He’s often found in small gestures from people that normally go unnoticed. I’ve found when you’re looking for Him, you find Him every day. For many of us, we are so caught up in life, that we forget to look for Jesus. We are so blinded by the mundane that we can’t see the supernatural right in front of us.

When we don’t look for Jesus, we don’t find Him. We begin wonder where God is in the middle of our troubles. We then rationalize that He must not care, and then allow our minds to tell us that we are insignificant to God. When we feel insignificant and uncared for, we wonder if God even cares that we serve Him. Praise takes a backseat in our lives. Our daily walk becomes a crawl. Reading the Bible becomes a chore. Prayer becomes nonexistent. We weren’t made to live like that.

If we are going to change the end result of that cycle, we have to change the beginning. We have to start looking for God working in our lives each day. In Psalm 105:4, the psalmist wrote, “Keep your eyes open for God, watch for His works; be alert for signs of His presence” (MSG). He knew that when we look for God, we will be excited about the things He is doing in our lives and share it with others. When we share what God is doing, it helps them to know what to look for.

If we haven’t looked for Jesus, His works, or His presence, how will we know what to look for. Those who see Him need to share with others to help calibrate their eyesight into the supernatural. They may have been seeing Jesus all along, but haven’t known it was Him. Lives are changed, miracles are born, and hope is restored when we see the supernatural on a daily basis. If you haven’t been looking, open your eyes. If you have been looking, but haven’t seen Him, ask someone who has. God promises to be found by those who seek Him. When’s the last time you sought Him? It’s time to make it a daily habit.

If you’ve seen Him recently, please comment with where. Let’s hear your testimony.

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March 8, 2016 · 5:55 AM

Read The Instructions

  
Have you ever purchased something that had to be assembled? How did you put it together? Did you read the instructions first and then try to do it? Did you have someone else read them to you and then you tried to build it? Or did you look at the picture and try to do it from that? I confess that I’ve been the latter more often than not. I’m getting better at looking at the instructions though. I’ve found that it’s quicker. As I age, it’s becoming more important to me to take a little longer and get it right the first time than to have the pride of building it on my own without instructions and having parts left over.

The same way we approach an assembly project can be the same way many approach being a Christian. Some people want to read the directions (Bible) to find out how to do it right while they build their faith. Others prefer to have a pastor read the instructions to them and then they try to figure it out from there. Still there are those who feel they have no need to read the Scriptures. They feel like that they can figure it out as they go. They try and fail over and over again until they get it or until they give up. Either way, they either have missing parts or there are parts left that they don’t know what to do with.

I’ve tried all three approaches to God at different stages of my life. When I was a teen, I tried to get by just by listening to my pastor and teachers. I got a decent understanding of what Christianity was about, but because I didn’t have the instructions in my hands, I didn’t have a clear picture to go by. In college and the years that followed, I tried the “who needs instructions” approach. I failed miserably. Things in my life kept breaking, parts were falling off and I was missing a lot things that I needed in order to be successful. The outside of my life resembled the picture on the box, but the inside infrastructure was missing. When I had weight applied to my life, it fell apart.

I’m a try, try again kind of person. I don’t easily give up. I may not have gotten it right in the first few tries, but I’m on the path to getting it right now. I’m spending more time reading the instructions and less time looking at the picture on the box. If I spend my life trying to create the picture on the box, I’ll never be the picture of who God wants me to be. We all have different gifts and talents which create different pictures, but our infrastructure has to come from God’s Word. We have to build ourselves up in the most holy faith as Jude 1:20 put it. We each are a work in progress guided by the Holy Spirit. If you’ve found your method isn’t working, try the original plan God had for you. Read His Word and follow the instructions He has for living this life of faith. Don’t ignore the instructions that are right in front of you. 

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March 7, 2016 · 5:45 AM

The Spiritual Odds

  
In Deuteronomy 20, Moses gave the Israelites a reminder that is good for us too. In verse 1 he said, “When you go out to fight your enemies and you face horses and chariots and an army greater than your own, do not be afraid. The LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, is with you!” (NLT) He knew that there would be battles they would face where they were outnumbered, outgunned, and outresourced. He knew that as people we would look at those things and be afraid.

When I was a kid, my brothers and I would always want to take things to a vote because we knew we had more votes than our parents. My dad would say, “Ok, but our vote counts as one more than yours.” Without knowing it, he was demonstrating what it’s like to have God on your side. It doesn’t matter how many problems you’re up against, you have one more solution than problems because God is on your side.

God wants to remind you today that with Him on your side, you are never outnumbered, outgunned, or outresourced. You don’t have to be afraid of what you’re up against no matter what the physical odds are. The spiritual odds are in your favor. In Joshua 1:9, God again reminds us of this promise. He said, “This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” So be strong and courageous today. God is with you. There is no need to be afraid. Walk in victory.

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March 4, 2016 · 5:30 AM

Lead Well

  
Being a leader is not something you’re elected to or appointed to. It’s something you earn day in and day out. Leadership is developed over time and displayed in the trenches. I’ve learned that people will work for managers, but give their heart to leaders. People quit on managers in hard times, but follow leaders through them. It takes guts to be a leader. They have to be out front, constantly communicate the vision, and trust others with their dream. They understand that a team works best when it is symbiotic.

The Bible has a lot to say about leadership. It gives examples of great leaders, servant leaders, and leaders who were poor examples. I believe we can learn from all types of leaders and implement their strategies into our lives. Believe it or not, someone is following you. They look up to you and that makes you a leader. You have a responsibility to learn about how to be a great leader so those following can lead the ones who are following them.

Here are some of my favorite Bible verses on leadership.

1.   Don’t let anyone think less of you because you are young. Be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity.

1 Timothy 4:12 NLT

2. Love and truth form a good leader; sound leadership is founded on loving integrity.

Proverbs 20:28 MSG

3. Do your best to win full approval in God’s sight, as a worker who is not ashamed of his work, one who correctly teaches the message of God’s truth.

2 Timothy 2:15 GNT

4. But as for you, be strong and courageous, for your work will be rewarded.

2 Chronicles 15:7 NLT

5. Good leadership is a channel of water controlled by GOD; he directs it to whatever ends he chooses.

Proverbs 21:1 MSG

6. Elders who provide effective leadership must be counted worthy of double honor, especially those who work hard in speaking and teaching.

1 Timothy 5:17 NET

7. The mark of a good leader is loyal followers; leadership is nothing without a following.

Proverbs 14:28 MSG

8. All of you together are Christ’s body, and each of you is a part of it. Here are some of the parts God has appointed for the church: first are apostles, second are prophets, third are teachers, then those who do miracles, those who have the gift of healing, those who can help others, those who have the gift of leadership, those who speak in unknown languages.

1 Corinthians 12:27-28 NLT

9. Without good direction, people lose their way; the more wise counsel you follow, the better your chances.

Proverbs 11:14 MSG

10. If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.

Romans 12:8 NLT

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