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“I am the LORD, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me? Jeremiah 32:27
The prophet Jeremiah was confused. The walls of Jerusalem were surrounded by an enemy much larger and more powerful than the army of the people of God. Defeat was imminent. There was no hope. Yet in the midst of this struggle Jeremiah is told to go buy a particular piece of land. He questions God about this, “Why buy land if we’re going to be killed or, at best, led into captivity?”
To paraphrase, God tells the prophet: “I’m God. I’m God of everything. I’m God of the enemy, I’m God of you. I’m God of those who doubt my existence; I’m God of those who refuse to obey me. I’m in control of every living thing and all of nature. I’m in control of any aspect of life. Of those who acknowledge me and those who don’t.
Times really haven’t changed much since the days of Jeremiah. People still doubt God’s existence. People still question why he acts the way he does. People still determine for themselves how God will respond to their situation. It’s especially hard at times to trust a God who, from our perspective, allows natural disasters to wipe out towns and entire families. It’s easy to question God when divorce devastates ‘good families’ and leaves children emotionally scarred in its wake or when trusted public figures deceive us.
Our Heavenly Father is passionately in love with us. He could make us comfortable, but he chooses to make us strong. As a loving parent he realizes that the best way to make us strong is to bring things into our lives that may hurt or make us struggle, but will, in the end make us able to withstand greater adversity.
Regardless of what you are going through, remember that ultimately God is in control. It may seem the enemy is closing in. It may seem, from our perspective that we are in a hopeless situation. If so, we are right where God wants us, for when we come to the point where we realize we can’t, God shows us he can!
If you water a young tree every day its roots will never grow deep. The tree that endures the drought and the storm and the dead cold of winter is the tree that has placed roots deep in the soil for nurture, strength and endurance.
The Christ-follower who endures the attacks of the enemy and learns to withstand the unfair assault of our evil generation will be able to stand because their roots of faith have grown deep in the knowledge that no matter what happens, their God is in control.
PRAYER: Father God. I thank you for the fact that you are God of all things. Sometimes I feel surrounded by people and circumstances that make me question your actions or your strength. Forgive me for those times of doubt. Empower me to trust you even when I don’t understand you. Help me to be comfortable even in the hard times. In your name, Amen.
“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Peter answered, “You are the Messiah.” Mark 8:29
To the educator he is known as a master teacher. To this day many methods of effective teaching can be traced to him.
The leader admires his style. Only eleven men of obscure background and little education yet they turned the world upside down as a result of his plan.
Those in religion see him as a catalyst of controversy. For some he is the bastion of trying new things. To others he’s the personification of conservatism and fundamentalist teaching.
But who is Jesus to you? It doesn’t matter who your parents tell you he is. It’s not important who your teachers tell you he is. Even the opinions of your closest friends don’t matter. What matters most is who YOU think Jesus is.
You can give him lip service and go to church and tell others that you believe he’s the Son of God and that he died on the cross. You can ‘believe’ he is who he says he is and that he did many miracles.
But Jesus’ question to the disciples was much more than a rhetorical question to test his popularity. It was a question of commitment and life-change. It was a question that demanded an answer with their lips, their attitudes and their desires.
If they said, as Peter did, that he was the son of the living God, then their lives demanded that they reflect the love, grace, mercy and faith that Jesus taught them. If their answer didn’t include a change of heart they were none better than the rich young man who walked away; the crowd that screamed crucify him; the Pharisees that refused to accept his personal message from God.
And so it is today, Jesus comes to us each day with the same question he asked the disciples, “Who do you say that I am?”
How will you show those around you the answer to the question? The good news is that his Holy Spirit gives us the power to answer, as Peter did. You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God. You are the Lord of my words, actions and attitudes.
PRAYER: Dear Jesus. I confess to you that it’s far easier to give you lip service than to show your lordship in my life. I testify, as Peter did, that you are the Son of the Living God; God incarnate, the son of the Living God. I ask that the power of your Holy Spirit would so invade my life that others would see you in me. In your name I pray, Amen.
“For it is: Do this, do that, a rule for this, a rule for that; a little here, a little there.” Isaiah 28:10
Nobody likes rules. When we are young we yearn to be free of rules and then we get older and find ourselves making more and more rules! Rules tend to confine and control us. Rules take away our freedom. Yet, in our more mature moments we have to admit that the world would be in big trouble if it weren’t for rules. Although rules control us, they can also guide us and protect us from…well, rule breakers!
When the Prophet Isaiah was ministering to the Israelites one of the complaints he and the other prophets heard was that they said the same things over and over again. The Prophets constantly stressed the basics. Later, in Jesus day, the Pharisees took rulemaking to new heights by burdening the people with rules to help them obey the rules. The problem was, those rules eventually, and I think unintentionally, replaced the real rules!
One of the reasons the Prophet Isaiah and his cohorts continued to stress the basics of the Godly life and didn’t move on to deeper things is that the people weren’t following the things God had already required of them.
The same is true today. We have conferences on seeing God’s power. We have books about seeing God’s power. There are some who make money off the ministry of telling people how to see God’s power. But nothing seems to help. For many of us we go through life hearing about God working in magnificent ways overseas or in the lives of others, but fail to see his power evident in our own life?
The thing each of us needs to realize is that our Heavenly Father is desperate to do things in our lives, but he can’t give us the deep things he has for us until we get the basics down. Other religions say you have to follow a multitude of rules to gain ‘divine power’. Not so with as Christ-followers. From the moment you accept Jesus you have all the power of God at your fingertips. His rules are simple. Get into a love relationship that holds him as number on and you will see mighty things.
So why don’t we see mighty God-power in our lives? God doesn’t expect big things from us until we master the little things in life. What are those ‘little things’? It starts with getting rid of all the stuff that keeps you from God. Anything that keeps you from holding God as number one in your life hinders your love relationship with him.
A love relationship with God means we take time out of our busy schedules to pray, read his word and fellowship with him. Those seem like little things but those little things are all God expects from us in order to show his power. It’s not about all sorts of rules like religion will tell you. Following God’s rules is all about freedom to be you.
PRAYER: Father God. I want to be desperate for you. There are so many things that keep me from seeing your power in my life. Empower me with your spirit to focus on the simple things of prayer, Bible reading and fellowship. Let your life shine powerfully through me to others, in Jesus name, Amen.
See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. 1 John 3:1
Of all the promises God gives us, none is more precious, more powerful and more amazing than the fact that we are his children. Ponder that thought today. Say it slowly in your mind and contemplate its meaning.
‘I am God’s child. The Creator/sustainer of the universe is my dad.’
When you were in grade school and kids were getting to know you, a question that often came up was “So what does your dad do for a living?” The question was more than a casual one. You were, in a sense, judged by the answer. ‘My dad is a carpenter or my dad works at a gas station’ may not carry as much clout as ‘my dad is a doctor or lawyer or president of the United States.’ Your importance was determined by the value placed on what your father did and you were expected to behave according to that distinction.
Today it’s a bit harder to get the concept of fatherhood established. For one thing, many kids have fathers who are uninvolved in their lives or only see them on given days. The term ‘father’ has lost its luster due to divorce and the dysfunctional state of the family, especially in the USA. The fact that earthly father’s often fail us doesn’t change the character or meaning behind our Heavenly Father. He isn’t distracted by getting the lawn mowed or finishing some project at work. He’s not more interested in his golf score than your well-being. He can be trusted, counted on to always be there, to be a ‘man’ of action not words. Your Heavenly Father will do just exactly what he says he’ll do. He’ll take care of you and knows what is best for you. You can trust your Heavenly Father because you are his child.
I don’t know if the story is true or not. I heard it years ago, but true or not it gives us a perfect picture of how we can trust our Heavenly Father.
The story is told of a house that caught fire in the middle of the night. The parents made it out but were unable to reach their little boy on the second floor. When the fire fighters arrived they heard the boy calling for help from a second floor window. They tried to coax him to jump so they could catch him, but he didn’t recognize their voices and the smoke and darkness (not to mention fear) kept him from being able to see his rescuers.
Then, his father called to him and implored him to jump. Immediately the boy jumped into the darkness to be wrapped in the arms of his father. What made him jump? It was the assurance that his daddy lay on the other side of the darkness and his daddy could be trusted.
You are God’s child. The creator of the universe is your daddy. He chose to make you so. Live today in the assurance that your Father loves you, cares for you, is ready and willing to forgive you of anything in your life that will keep you from relationship with him. He is real. He is powerful. He passionately loves you.
PRAYER: Dear Dad, Much as I love my earthly father I have to confess there were times he didn’t understand me like you do. There are times as a parent I’ve failed my own children. I praise you for always being there for me. Forgive me for the times I’ve doubted you or rebelled against you. Help me to live in such a way that even though the world doesn’t know you, they will know I’m your kid. In Jesus name, Amen.
So the king gave the order, and they brought Daniel and threw him into the lions’ den. The king said to Daniel, “May your God, whom you serve continually, rescue you!” Daniel 6:16
He’d only been doing what he always did. Every morning, noon and night it was the same. Daniel would kneel before an open window where he could spend a few moments talking with his God. Unlike you and me, he didn’t have the continual presence of the Holy Spirit dwelling within him. The promise of a Messiah was years and years in the future. He was still subject to the rules of the Old Testament even though, as an exile in a foreign land he couldn’t sacrifice the way he’d like. But Daniel could pray.
Daniels firm faith in God was his trademark. Even in difficult times. The king knew it and even though he didn’t follow Daniel’s god, his tremendous respect for the way Daniel lived brought huge respect for both Daniel and his God.
Daniel’s enemies knew about his faith too. But they were more interested in personal gain than in religion. As a result of their hatred for Daniel and his people they tricked the King into throwing Daniel in the Lions Den where his death was certain.
The king spent a sleepless night worrying about Daniel. We aren’t told how Daniel slept that night. Surrounded by hungry lions. The remains of previous victims bone’s scattered around. The smell of the lions. For most of us that would have been the makings of a sleepless night too. But I have a feeling Daniel slept like a baby. Daniel knew his God would deliver him.
Did he still have to endure the lions den? Yep. Just like Jonah had to endure the whale, and Abraham had to endure the emotional trauma of nearly sacrificing his son, and the disciple’s had to endure the storm at sea.
But in each situation God came along just in time to provide what was needed. Each person had a different need to be met and only God knew how that need was going to be met best. That’s the way God does things. God knows what we need, when we need it, and he comes through for us every time. The danger comes when we try to take matters into our own hands or force others to do ‘what we think God wants them to do’.
Your heavenly Father knows your situation. Every intimate detail. Only he knows the best time and method for your deliverance. The beauty of following Christ is that we don’t have to worry about tomorrow (or for today for that matter). Our only concern is to draw close to him though prayer, Bible study and fellowship with believers. He’ll take care of the rest in the best way possible and at just the right time for you.
PRAYER: Father God, there are so many things going on in my life right now that scare me, frustrate me and cause me to worry and fear. Empower me by your spirit to learn from the life of Daniel. I feel like I’m surrounded by lions. Help me to see your hand in this. Empower me to trust you to deliver me in your way and your time. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.
Mike Fisk & Built with Grace 