Untouchable

I'm reading the book of Daniel and was struck one day this week as I read 3:27.  We learn earlier in chapter 3 that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego had been tied up and thrown into a furnace so hot that it killed the soldiers who got close enough to put them in.  King Nebuchadnezzar sees four men (instead of the three that were thrown in) walking around in the "roaring flames" unbound and unharmed.  He calls the three men out of the fire.  They come out and we read in verse 27 (New Living Translation):

Then the high officers, officials, governors, and advisers crowded around them and saw that the fire had not touched them. Not a hair on their heads was singed, and their clothing was not scorched. They didn’t even smell of smoke!

They had been in the midst of the flames but someone who hadn't seen them there wouldn't know it.  They were in the fire but it had not touched them.  And so it can be with us.  While we may bear physical signs of battle, God's presence with us (like His presence as the fourth person in the furnace) and His promise never to leave or forsake us give us "the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding" (Philippians 4:7 NKJV) and "joy inexpressible and full of glory" (1 Peter 1:8 NKJV).  I've often heard of and even met people who are exuberant and joyful and positive despite what appear to be crushing circumstances.  God desires to give us beauty for ashes, but we must surrender our ashes to Him so our hands and hearts are free to accept the beauty He has for us.

“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me,
Because the Lord has anointed Me...
To console those who mourn in Zion,
To give them beauty for ashes,
The oil of joy for mourning,
The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness;
That they may be called trees of righteousness,
The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.”

Isaiah 61: 1a, 3 NKJV

Glory to God indeed!

Don't Let Go!

Then Jacob was left alone; and a Man wrestled with him until the breaking of day.  Now when He saw that He did not prevail against him, He touched the socket of his hip; and the socket of Jacob’s hip was out of joint as He wrestled with him.  And He said, “Let Me go, for the day breaks.”

But he said, “I will not let You go unless You bless me!”

So He said to him, “What is your name?”

He said, “Jacob.”

And He said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed.” (Genesis 32:24-28 NKJV)

It is easy to think this passage is about Jacob demanding something that was being withheld from him.  However this is not the case.  We know that God desires to bless us abundantly.

Bring all the tithes into the storehouse,
That there may be food in My house,
And try Me now in this,”
Says the Lord of hosts,
“If I will not open for you the windows of heaven
And pour out for you such blessingThat there will not be room enough to receive it. (Malachi 3:10)

But sometimes we are our own roadblock.  Well, maybe you're not but I am.  What the Genesis passage is really about is commitment and perseverance.  Jacob is willing to put in the time and effort to get what God has for Him.

Some of us pray and then complain that God didn't answer.  Perhaps God answered and we missed it.  Do we listen for an answer or do we say what we have to say and then go on our way?  We want a word from the Lord but we don't read His Word.  God is always speaking.  Are we listening?  As the saying goes, if you're feeling far from God, guess who moved?

Like Jacob, we must not give up.  Let us commit to hold on and get our blessing.

Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:13-14 NKJV)

A Change is Gonna Come

I like A Change is Gonna Come by Sam Cooke.  Well, all except these lines:

It's been too hard living but I'm afraid to die 
Cause I don't know what's up there beyond the sky

I hope the change that's gonna come is that people learn what's up there beyond the sky so they are no longer afraid to die.

For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the Christians who have died will rise from their graves.  Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever. (1 Thessalonians 4:16, 17 NLT)

But I digress.  That has nothing to do with what I came here to write about, but I thought of it when I chose the song name for the title of this post.

What I really came here to say is that I recently started using Twitter and I was surprised to discover that I enjoy it.  At first I was just following some people, but I'm starting to send an occasional Tweet.  Since my blogs are kind of a personal archive, I wanted to capture the Tweets here as well.  Here's my latest.

God changes things. The pharaoh went from decreeing Moses' death to being his adoptive grandfather! #keepthefaith

I included a link to this passage.

So Pharaoh commanded all his people, saying, “Every son who is born you shall cast into the river, and every daughter you shall save alive.”

And a man of the house of Levi went and took as wife a daughter of Levi.  So the woman conceived and bore a son. And when she saw that he was a beautiful child, she hid him three months. But when she could no longer hide him, she took an ark of bulrushes for him, daubed it with asphalt and pitch, put the child in it, and laid it in the reeds by the river’s bank.  And his sister stood afar off, to know what would be done to him.

Then the daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the river. And her maidens walked along the riverside; and when she saw the ark among the reeds, she sent her maid to get it.  And when she opened it, she saw the child, and behold, the baby wept. So she had compassion on him, and said, “This is one of the Hebrews’ children.”

Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, “Shall I go and call a nurse for you from the Hebrew women, that she may nurse the child for you?”

And Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Go.” So the maiden went and called the child’s mother.  Then Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Take this child away and nurse him for me, and I will give you your wages.” So the woman took the child and nursed him.  And the child grew, and she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, and he became her son. So she called his name Moses, saying, “Because I drew him out of the water.” (Exodus 1:22-2:10 NKJV)

I like the challenge of conveying a message in a limited number of characters.  I won't go into a lot of commentary here either.  Suffice it to say, keep the faith because a change is gonna come.

I want to be like Joseph

At tonight's youth revival at FMBC, Rev. Damien Durr from The Temple Church, Nashville, TN, preached from 1 Peter 2:1-10 with a focus on verse 9, which says we are "a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people."  He listed some of the "peculiar" people and events in the Bible.  Though this is not directly what he was talking about, it struck me that I want to be like Joseph.  Or perhaps I want to want to be like Joseph.  His brothers did him really wrong and as governor of Egypt, he had the power and the perfect opportunity to get them back.  Think about it: they didn't even know who he was!  But instead of seeking revenge, he forgave them and did right by them.  I'm not one for vengeance, but I tend to walk away from people.  I don't want to risk being hurt again and I don't want to do anything good for them if they've hurt me or done me wrong.  Yet those things are exactly what God calls me to do.

Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times?  Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven. (Matthew 18:21, 22 KJV)

Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.  But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. (Matthew 5:43-45 KJV)

That is indeed being peculiar.

Lord, I definitely can't do it in my own power.  Please help me want to become more like You and then to use your power through the Holy Spirit in my life to do it.  Amen.

The Power is in the Message

And all those who heard it marveled at those things which were told them by the shepherds. (Luke 2:18 NKJV)

It's amazing how a scripture we've read many times can unexpectedly take on new meaning.  I was reading what I think of as the Linus monologue, Luke 2:8-14, and continued reading further in the chapter.  When I got to verse 18, it struck me that everyone marveled at the message they received from the shepherds.  I've heard teachings and sermons that talk about the low esteem attached to the position of shepherd.  And that's easy to believe.  We're told in verse 8 that the shepherds were hanging out with the sheep in the field during the night.  That doesn't sound the least bit glamourous.  I would imagine the shepherds didn't smell too good.  Nevertheless these lowly shepherds were the first to receive the news about the birth of Jesus...from a multitude of angels no less!  After they visited the Christ child, they went about sharing the message they received from the angels.  And "all those who heard it marveled."  The shepherds weren't anyone extraordinary, but they carried extraordinary news from an extraordinary God.  And so it is with us.

How Firm A Foundation

I said in one of my last few posts that I was going to stop deliberating so much and just write.  That is much easier said than done for me.  However I want to capture what is going through my head and heart right now, so here goes.

God often speaks to me through songs.  A few minutes ago I was listening to a song that includes these lyrics:

I can sense in my spirit a blessing is coming and it won't be long.
I expect it any day now.  It's on the way!
I can feel it down in my spirit...

That last line especially arrested me.  I could almost visualize reaching deep inside myself, past the hurt and fear and pain, to a place of hope and trust in God.  From there, I began to think about what was "down in my spirit" and another image formed.  It was of a slab of concrete. That's all, a blank slab.  But I knew the slab had once been a building.  A storm had come, perhaps the destructive and devastating tornadoes of 27 April 2011.  All that made the building recognizable was gone.  No items to identify what the building had been or what rooms had been lost.  No walls.  No roof.  But the foundation remains.  In the foundation lies the potential to rebuild.  It might be the same type of building again or something completely different, but as long as the foundation remains, the building can rise again.

And so it is with us.  Our desire may be to avoid negative things in life, but that is not our lot.  Troubles are a part of life.  Sometimes God delivers us from hardships, but sometimes He delivers us in them, that is, He gives us the wherewithal to endure in the midst of the storm.  And if like Job we lose everything, so too like Job we can be restored because our Foundation is sure.

"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever." Hebrews 13:8 NLT

So when the storms come in our lives, we must trust our Foundation.  No matter how fierce the storm, our
Foundation is secure.  All that we value - status, possessions, people, our health, even our life - may be lost.  All, that is, except Christ.  No matter our circumstances, He is with us.  Even in death, He tells us in John 14:2, 3 that He has prepared a place for us and that He will take us there.

I've never been good with closings, so I'll stop abruptly :-) and conclude with these verses.

"We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed—" 2 Corinthians 4:8, 9 NKJV

Obey and Trust

When I take notes during the sermon at church, sometimes the Holy Spirit may press a point with me a little differently than how the preacher approached it. Such was the case today. This message wasn't stated outright in the sermon, but it is related to what the pastor was saying. He was talking about when Jesus prayed in Matthew 26:39: "O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will." So often we make decisions based on the expected outcomes. But as people of faith, as children of the Most High God Whose ways are far higher than our ways, and Whose thoughts are far higher than our thoughts, it is up to us to obey His will and trust Him for the outcome. When Jesus looked ahead and saw the suffering and shame and death He would experience, he could have just said no. But I am so thankful that He didn't because it was His suffering and death and resurrection that purchased our salvation. He blazed a trail through death for all of us to follow. With Jesus as our example, let us strive to more closely live our lives according to God's will and not worry about what will happen as a result.