February 24, 2011
God’s Patience
Today’s reading is a quick visit to the book of Judges (Chapter 10, Verses 6-16), which highlights the patience and the grace of God given to the Israelites who “did evil in the eyes of the Lord… they forsook the Lord and no longer served him.” Many times the Israelites had turned away from God to worship other gods; God’s justice quickly swept down upon them and misfortune came their way. Many times, the Israelites were conquered by other nations and they suffered under the oppression of their conquerors. Many times the Israelites were delivered from the hands of their oppressors by God. Eventually, the Israelites tried God’s patience to the point where a lesson needed to be learned:
The Lord replied, “When the Egyptians, the Amorites, the Ammonites, the Philistines, the Sidonians, the Amalekites and the Maonites oppressed you and you cried to me for help, did I not save you from their hands? But you have forsaken me and served other gods, so I will no longer save you. Go and cry out to the Gods you have chosen. Let them save you when you are in trouble!” (Judges 10:11-14)
God challenged the Israelites to count on their foreign gods to save them; but they did not. God watched on as the Israelites were enslaved by their conquerors and they suffered greatly under the yoke of their captors. Yet, in these times of trouble for the Israelites, they became remorseful and their inside sincerity finally became true to their repentance towards God.
But the Israelites said to the Lord, “We have sinned. Do with us whatever you think best, but please rescue us now.” then they got rid of the foreign gods among them and served the Lord. And he could bear Israel’s misery no longer. (Judges 10:15-16)
Even with so many transgressions against the Lord, the Lord still took back the Israelites with open arms. His patience with us is unfathomable. No matter how we may have sinned against Him, He always shows mercy to those who truly seek His forgiveness. For the same reason, we should extend the same mercy and patience for our spouses and our loved ones. No matter how frustrated we may become with the people in our lives, approaching them with patience and acceptance follows God’s example.
How can you communicate patience and mercy in your actions today?
January 31, 2011
Inspiration in Times of Trouble
As I sit down to write today’s article, I am reminded by a quote from Saint Nicholas of Flue who says that
Each stage of life has its special duties; by accomplishing them, one may find happiness.
Indeed there are many duties we are called to attend to, be it in our daily jobs, parenting roles, relationships and interactions. Try to find time to discover the fulfillment of each of our busy, daily tasks and relish the happiness that they bring to your life.
In times of trouble, we are often faced with the question… why? The answer is not always apparent, but with prayer and faith we learn to be at peace with the outcomes because these outcomes are always a product of God’s glory in this world.
To the question: Why is God testing me?
Rick Warren writes that “Character is both developed and revealed by tests, and all of life is a test.” Life is a test for the next world beyond. Character is something that you carry with you every day – it is shaped and formed by the Lord. It is a measure of the thing that God sees without fail. As the Bible writes: “Man looks at the outward appearance, but God sees the heart.” What you should be concerned about is this measure that God sees in us… not in the outward nature that man looks at first.
At the “heart” of the matter, “Your true character is something that no one can injure but yourself.” -C.H. Spurgeon; We are constantly tested and molded in our character… a part of us that is of high importance in matters of faith.
To the question: Why do bad things happen to good people?
“God doesn’t always change the circumstances, but He can change us to meet the circumstances. That’s what it means to live by faith.” – Warren Wiersbe
“Sometimes your medicine bottle says, ‘Shake well before using.’ That is what God has to do with some of His people. He has to shake them well before they are usable.” – Vance Havner
“After all, a crisis doesn’t make a person; it reveals what a person is made of.” – Warren Wiersbe
A crisis isn’t meant to be a punishment or a product of God’s wrath. Faith reminds us that the Lord is a loving God, watchful of our needs and constantly guiding us in matters of the heart. The circumstances we are under aren’t meant to bring us down – they should be treated as opportunities to “shake ourselves up” so that we are useful to the Lord and His purpose. God doesn’t abolish “bad” things or negative outcomes. These are circumstances intended to change us instead – they are opportunities to elevate ourselves to a stronger moral fiber and character.
To the question: How do I survive this difficult time?
To this, C.H. Spurgeon writes: “If you seek to know the path of your duty, use God as your compass.” Steer your way with faith. Pray for guidance and look carefully for the messages and the hints left behind for you to follow.
To the problems we encounter, Victor Hugo reminds us to
“Have courage for the great sorrows of life and patience for the small ones; and when you have laboriously accomplished your daily task, go to sleep in peace. God is awake.”
Go in peace knowing that God is preparing you for the challenge and testing those changes so that you too will notice and give praise to Him for his greatness. Have courage because God is at the helm, steering your journey through life. Your role is to take heed and notice all the contributions He has made towards your character and your survival in this life.
Go in peace. God Bless.
January 29, 2011
A Bitter Pill to Swallow
What kind of message do you take home each time you read scripture? How about when you attend church? What lessons have you taken from countless sermons you’ve sat through on the Gospel of Christ? DO YOUR ACTIONS match the message that the Gospel wants us to hear? The truth is, many of us are living a contradiction in our lives. There are things that we like to hear and want to hear, but then there are things that we turn away from because the message is too strong or too poignant for us to bear.
From the second book of Timothy:
3 For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4 They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. -2 Timothy 4:3-4 NIV
I first discovered this scripture from a blog post challenging me with: What Path Are You On? The author aptly warns us through an interpretation of Timothy that:
They wanna hear its OK to do as you please and you are saved so there are no consequences for your actions now. They wanna hear that its OK to be in the world and partake of its evils. They don’t care about the sacrifice That Gods Son made for us or His Laws. They say disregard The Laws for you are under grace.
That time that Timothy warns us of is now. Confusion and mediocrity plagues the ranks of Christ’s followers because of this warning from God. It is too easy to follow “ala carte” faith: picking and choosing the elements that suit us and ignoring the ones that do not. Seeing this truth in ourselves as mediocre Christians may be a bitter pill to swallow. How can we be proud of a self image that is less than flattering? Jesus preached the truth and immediate obedience to the Lord and His Laws. Jesus did not preach obedience later. He did not preach obedience tomorrow. God’s Laws must be followed NOW. And what became of Him for sending this message? He was crucified for it.
Hear now that in this world, it is far too easy to let our faith take a backseat to all our worldly desires and worries. We scurry to pull together a meager (or even prosperous) living for ourselves and our families: show up to work on time, commute, shop, and do a thousand other things to “get ahead” in this life. This is what we do to “make a living”. We must pay attention however, to ALL the lessons of the Gospel at the same time. Salvation is not a buffet line of practices, formulas and prayers. Salvation is about turning your life around and dedicating it to the Lord… not the other way around.
Dedicating.
One more time:
Dedicating.
It bears repeating because as Timothy further reveals:
People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy (2 Timothy 3:2 NIV)
Have you dedicated your life to yourself? Is your worship in a temple filled with your achievements or lined with your wealth? Have you put off your relationship with Christ as secondary to these temptations? Don’t let the worldly desires pull you away from the mission that should be paramount in your life. The Gospel warns us to avoid men that Timothy writes of. The time is now.
The story isn’t all doom and gloom. In Matthew 5:17: “Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.” In it is the saving grace of the Lord, for even though Christ was crucified for bringing to the world God’s Truth, God isn’t coming to bring about destruction and ruin in return. On the contrary, he is comforting us to know that no other sacrifice except for His son is necessary to appease Him for our sinful nature. To FULFILL means that He is coming to fulfill His promises of salvation for those who choose to follow Christ. To FULFILL means that those who choose not to follow his laws will also be appropriately handled by Him. To FULFILL also means that we as Christian people must keep up our end by following the Lord obediently now. A man cannot serve two masters. Choose your master in this world wisely. Choose to follow God and do so with your whole heart.
January 24, 2011
Stormy Weather
Read a wonderful post titled: Surviving Storms today. It was a synopsis of a Sunday sermon witnessed by the author. The blogger begins: “We all have to endure storms. They show up in the form of financial, occupational, and/or personal crises.”; She uses Acts 27:19-41 to illustrate a story of Paul and others who were sailing to Rome when they got caught in a terrible storm.
The points of weathering a terrible storm was illustrated by their visiting pastor based on this reading including the following challenges:
- What is God asking you to throw overboard so you can survive the storm?
- What simple step is God asking you to do to move out of the storm?
- What opportunity does God want you to see right now?
I liked point #1: what kind of burdens do you carry now that keeps you from staying afloat? What are the most important things that will help us survive and stay afloat? Check out the passage and read the original blog entry; the discussion is as encouraging as it is wonderfully metaphorical. Remember that “It doesn’t matter how big your sail is… it matters how much wind is behind your sail. If you rely on God’s grace, you will always survive the storm.“
What kind of storms and hardships have you lived through in your life? What did you do to survive? What helped you to survive and see a future that is worthwhile?
For me, my job has been a daily source of pressure and unmitigated stress. I still wake up in the wee hours of the morning, every morning, from worry or doubt related to the previous day’s work. Though the conditions weighed me down, I was never expected to get rid of any of it. I had many grievances against my managers from past incidents – a past that was already set in a long ago time frame. Should I continue to address what angers me, or should I focus my energies on the new, future opportunities that were made available by God for me to grow.
January 12, 2011
It’s Good to Ask God
Verse for the Day: 1 Samuel 15:22
What Items would you like to pray about each day? How might you create a time to pray regularly?
Daily prayer, is all about preparing our needs and routinely asking for our intentions and guidance. When fitted into a daily schedule it may seem like just a routine, like brushing teeth, preparing breakfast or shaving, but programmed into this practice is a sense of duty. It is that sense of duty that brings us closer to God because within it is obedience… as in today’s verse, “to obey is better than sacrifice” when it comes to our choice in how to serve the Lord.
November 17, 2008
Stumbling Along
Recognize
Everyone who comes to know Jesus stumbles because of him. He fails to meet our wrong expectations. He calls us to do impossible things or to become something we think we could never become. This is his way of teaching us how much we need Him. He breaks us to pieces so that he can put us back together in His image. -Michael Card
Renew
The rule is this: Christians are people who remember their own weaknesses and failure. They are under reconstruction. So they offer hope and forgiveness to people who fall and who need Jesus’ healing grace and hope. -Donald M. Joy
Revive
1 Corinthians 1:20-31
2 Corinthians 4:1-12
Commentary
1 Corinthians 1:20-31 – I found this passage oddly confusing, but the last part gelled it together: “…For this world in its present form is passing away.” It’s all temporary. To remember the way we were when Jesus calls us is important because that status (no matter how terrible or difficult it may have been) holds a key to the hope of our future: For all that we have, reflect as if we do not have it. For all that we lack, think not of our deprivation. Whatever status we are in is only temporary in the grander picture of eternity.
2 Corinthians 4:1-12 – A nice passage about how our own resurrection is through our dependency and our tie to Jesus Christ. We are in need of Jesus’ saving grace and hope. We are totally and completely dependent on Him for salvation.
May 14, 2008
The Prayer of Jabez
I recently picked up a Christian devotional entitled “The Prayer of Jabez” and I was overwhelmed with the sheer enthusiasm of its message. This devotional sparked a whole series of books, devotionals and publications all centered around a little-known man from the Bible. He wasn’t anyone as famous or well known as David or Noah; in fact, this man: Jabez is only mentioned once in the Bible and then only for two sentences. But what he has to say in prayer has phoenomenal impact and meaning on our life as God-fearing (revering) individuals. In fact, Jabez’s prayer has inspired me to write a series of articles on exactly what he has to say and how it can help you build your relationship with God.
From the first book of Chronicles:
Jabez was more honorable than his brothers. His mother had named him Jabez, saying, “I gave birth to him in pain.” Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, “Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain.” And God granted his request. (1 Chronicles 4:9-10, NIV)
The prayer goes so quickly, you almost miss it. Truly, this is one gem that anyone can fit into their schedule in just 10 minutes. As a recap, Jabez did something remarkable in prayer that changed his life compared to the rest of the people referenced and mentioned in the same chapter. Jabez’s four requests:
- “Please bless me indeed!”
- “Please enlarge my territory!”
- “Please put Your hand on me!”
- “Please keep me from evil!”
And God granted his requests to him… The book, “The Prayer of Jabez” by Bruce Wilkinson tells of testimonials and anecdotes of answered prayers and requests just by changing one’s mindset to think and act along the lines of this four part prayer. Without giving away too much about the book itself, I’d like to share a series of blog articles just about Jabez’s prayer and ways to interpret its meaningfulness in our lives as Christians.
As a little background, back in the times of the ancient Hebrews (about 1200 B.C.) Jabez was born to the tribe of Judah… the same tribe that David and Jesus came from later… in Bible times, a person’s name defined his future. For example, Solomon means “peace,” and sure enough, he became the first king of Israel to reign without going to war. As history would have it, Jabez’s entry into the world was not the most auspicious one. Jabez bore a heavy burden with his name, meaning “pain” – what kind of future would be in store for him with an awful name like that?
Jabez was desperate. He was already predestined by his culture to have a miserable, poor, simple life… perhaps his family and tribe even treated him as such. In his desperation, instead of lamenting his situation or cursing his mother’s cruelty, he began to pray to God in earnest and he starts by asking for His blessing.
The devotional made a good point that the Biblical sense of “blessing” isn’t the watered down, every day expression we use when people sneeze… we ask God to bless everything: our parents, our day at work, the food we eat; however in the Biblical meaning, to request a “blessing” is to ask for a “supernatural” favor.
When we ask for God’s blessing, we’re not asking for more of what we could get for ourselves. We’re sincerely asking for the kind of good things only God has the power to know about or give. That’s why the Bible says, “The Lord’s blessing is our greatest wealth. All our work adds nothing to it!” (Proverbs 10:22, TLB)
The Lord has many blessings to bear upon each of us as well. But the catch is, we have to ask. If you’ve never prayed and asked God for His blessings, you’ve missed out on a gift that keeps giving, and giving, and gving. Don’t miss out on this opportunity of your lifetime! As the Bible says:
You do not have because you do not ask. The Bible also says (James 4:2) Ask, promised Jesus, and it will be given to you… What man is there among you who, if his son asks for bead, will give him a stone? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!” (Matthew 7:7,9,11)
And that’s the catch. there is no limit to God’s blessings in our lives. They are only limited by us and our forgetfulness or ignorance to ask, not by His resources, his power or willingness to give.
May 5, 2008
The Tree
A Passage on Trees
From one of my reading sessions, I found a nice life-parable to share from the works of Australian author and inspirational speaker, Matthew Kelley. In his book The Rhythm of Life: Living Every Day with Passion & Purpose, he remarked an observation of a tall, old tree on the grounds of the monastary where he was staying, that “despite its imperfect forms and crooked branches, it had a perfection of its own.” Kelley admired the great tree and went on to remark on its significance.
Later in the year, Kelley writes of an experience on a nature walk after a storm that revealed a meaningful metaphor for him and his spiritual growth. The violent storm had uprooted and destroyed many of the trees in the surrounding area, but this large, lone tree was virtually unaffected. He observed that
A tree with strong roots grows strong. A tree with strong roots bears much fruit. A tree with strong roots bears good fruit. A tree with strong roots can weather any storm. If a tree is uprooted and replanted often, it will not be able to sink its roots deep into the earth and therefore will not grow strong or be fruitful.
Likewise, for people, these tree roots are a metaphor for our intellectual and spiritual growth. The things that we do to grow and to establish these roots affects our strength to weather overpowering challenges and strife, as well as the quality of our existence through the fruits that we bear on our branches.
Meditations as a Tree
Another reflection on trees comes from Eastern Asian philosophy (I’m not sure exactly which one though) which I learned a long time ago as a teenager from a family acquaintance. It’s a meditation that also involves thinking of trees – its thought processes gives you the opportunity to relax and expel negative energies from the body.
Imagine your body as a tree. Your leaves and your branches on top pull in the pollution, carbon dioxide and negative energies from the atmosphere. These toxins pass through your branches, down your trunk and into your roots. As a tree, your body processes these negative energies and converts them to basic, life-giving ingredients to put back into the earth: oxygen, water and nutrients.
Imagine your tree-like body as a part of this earthly cycle. Absorbing, processing, releasing. Whatever problems or strife you have experienced and “absorbed” into your self, let it pass through your branches, down your trunk and out of your body into the ground.
Close your eyes and focus on your breathing. Each breath pulls in more from the atmosphere, then pushes it down and releases it into the ground. Know that you are a part of a cycle – not an ending point in the absorption of those negative energies. Whatever you’ve endured to this point in the day is just as easily released back into the earth. Think and feel yourself through several cycles of breathing, allowing yourself to relax.
I like to think of life’s daily events as generators of energy (both good and bad). We can choose to react – which catches and holds on to the energy, or we can simply let it pass. Over the years, I have managed stress and stress relief very well with this simple visualization. Give it a try and see if it works for you!
