PERSISTING IN THE PRESENCE OF GOD

What is unbelief? Not believing? Not sure? Wishy-washy? Can’t make up your mind kind of thing? That uneasy feeling? Do you ever get discouraged by unbelief? That shoulder burden kind of discouraged? It’s not just a matter of having a bad attitude or just trying to think positive, but a real live weightiness. Peering at the ridge this morning, I started thinking about unbelievers. We’ve all been there. We’ve all been unbelievers at some point. None of us are born believers. Oh sure, some can’t look back to a time when they weren’t believers, but I’m not talking about just a belief. I’m talking about a living belief. The kind of belief that changes life – for you and all those around you. You see, if we aren’t changed, belief does us no good. Even the evil one believes.

As all these thoughts ran through my whacked out mind, waiting to be separated and solidified into some stream of understanding, I asked myself the question – Am I an unbeliever? How about you? Do I always believe in His power? Can He really handle this problem, without my help? Do I always believe in His omniscience? Does He really know everything? Do I always believe in His salvation? He can save even me? Do I always believe in His presence? He’s here with me right now? Well, since you put it that way…

If I’m lay it all out there-honest, sometimes I am an unbeliever. Some say that’s not possible if you’re a Christian. I say pshaw! Belief is an absolute kind of thing. We either believe or we don’t. We can’t half believe, or sort of believe. But, our faith is not perfected here on earth. Oh, it will be one day, but not while we are still in this world. While I’m still in this world, there may be times I struggle with belief in God’s power, in His perfection, in His grace, in His mercy, in His provision. Yes, I do struggle with unbelief. But, belief is a process. You see, if we believe in God, are obedient to Him, seek His Word and are guided by it, we are in the process of being made perfect, being made holy, sanctification is happening.

Then many who hear him say these things believed in him.
Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you keep obeying my teachings. And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” “ But we are descendants of Abraham,” they said. “We have never been slaves to anyone on earth. What do you mean, ‘set free’?”
“Yes, I realize that you are descendants of Abraham. And yet some of you are trying to kill me because my message does not find a place in you hearts.”
John 8:30-37

Do you see that? Jesus was talking to the people who believed in Him. Even the Jews who believed in Jesus struggled with unbelief, with understanding.

“But if you can do anything, take pity on us and help us.”
“’If you can’?” said Jesus ‘Everything is possible for him who believes.’”
Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!”
Mark 9:24

The more I see God’s power, the more powerful I believe He is. I do believe! The more I see God’s love, the more loving I will believe He is. I do believe! The more I read God’s Word, the more I understand and am guided by it. I do believe! The more I seek God’s voice, the more I listen for it, the more I will hear it. I do believe! The more, the more, the more. I do believe! I do believe! I do believe! In order for our belief to grow, the Light must always be getting brighter in our darkness, kind of like a de-dimmer.

As long as there is breath in the lungs there is hope for the heart. Breathe in the hope that belief brings. Breathe in the hope that brings salvation for friends. Breathe in the hope that His grace is enough. Breathe in the hope that His mercy never fails. Breathe in the hope that His power can change anything. Breathe in the hope that He is persistent. Breathe in the hope that He will help us in our unbelief, if we only believe enough to call to Him – help me overcome my unbelief!

Do you ever feel like sometimes all you can do is praise? That it just bubbles up and overflows, cascading and seeping into every life nook and cranny. Like, it’s sunny and 75! You know, that giddy all is right with the world.

The sun is shining…Praise! Yes. The bills are paid…Praise! Yes. The car is running…Praise! Yes. The kids are safe…Praise! Yes. The animals are good…Praise! Yes. The job’s good…Praise! Yes. The health restored…Praise! Yes. Life’s good… Praise! Yes. …Praise ! Yes. …Praise! Yes.

Then sings my soul, my Savior God to thee! How Great Thou Art!

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Praise God from whom all blessings flow!
Praise Him all creatures here below!
Praise Him above ye heavenly host!
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost!

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Praise the Lord, I tell myself; with my whole heart I will praise His holy name.
Praise the Lord, I tell myself; and never forget the good things he does for me.
He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases.
He ransoms me from death and surrounds me with love and tender mercies.
He fills my life with good things.
My youth is renewed like the eagles!
Psalm 103

It’s easy to break out in song and cut the happy rug when all is well, isn’t it? In those times, it’s hard to believe life has ever been anything but good. But, what about the Praise…when all is not so well? Yes?

In the mourning…Praise? Yes. In the illness…Praise? Yes. In the fear…Praise? Yes. In the uncertainty…Praise. Yes. In the trials…Praise? Yes. In the temptations…Praise? Yes. In the death…Praise? Yes. In the storm…Praise? Yes. In the brokenness…Praise? Yes. …Praise? Yes. …Praise? Yes. …Praise? Yes.

When sorrows like sea billows roll.

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I will praise the Lord at all times.
I will constantly speak his praises.
I will boast only in the Lord;
Let all who are discouraged take heart.
Come, let us tell of the Lord’s greatness;
Let us exalt his name together.
Psalm 34:-13
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“When you go through deep waters and great trouble, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown! When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you. For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior…Do not be afraid, for I am with you. I will gather you and your children from east and west and from north and south. I will bring my sons and daughters back to Israel from the distant corners of the earth. All who claim me as their God will come, for I have made them for my glory. It was I who created them.”
Isaiah 43:2-7

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Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will give us later.
Romans 8:18

It’s in the praise that the miracles happen.  Praise always precedes the miracle. Let’s make today a day of praise, for the miracles to come! The miracles of yesterday. The miracles of today.  The miracles of tomorrow.  In His leading,  in His carrying, He is always, in everything, worthy of our Praise.

In the bleak midwinter
Frosty wind made moan
Earth stood hard as iron
Water like a stone
Snow had fallen snow on snow…

It was gray, cold, foggy and the ground was snow covered. Yuck! As me and worst-best were walking along, I was thinking about how winter it seemed, almost bleak. So quiet. Creepy still. Of course, that’s normal. It is winter. While bemoaning how winterish it was, out of the blue – Tweet! I don’t know what kind of bird it was, I don’t know my birds, remember the Great Snowy Owl? Anyway, it was not some gentle, slow awakening tweet, but a loud, robust, confident tweet. Like, TWEET! Hey! You know the kind in the early morning, the only day you can sleep in, right outside your window. I wondered if he knew it was winter. It was such a contradiction. Winter, cold, dead, heavy, hard, sunshine hopeless. Tweet, bright, light, airy, alive, hopeful.

This little bird, in the midst of the gray, was a sign of awakening life, even in the dead of winter. Quite a contrast. Dreary versus chirpy. Desolate versus hope. Despair versus joy. In the barrenness of the day, a joyful song. We live in two parallel worlds – one full of despair and one filled with hope. Sometimes we unfortunately find ourselves with a foot in both. One in the mud and one on dry land. That can make us a little lopsided. Makes us feel a little off kilter. Makes our spirit uneasy.

Still winter, in the evening hours, darkish, I was doing what I do with the one I do it with. She pranced along as evening turned into night. It was life quiet. It happened again. Out of the blue. Peep. A hearty PEEP! I was like, “What, it can’t be!?!” Of course, I don’t know my frogs, but I tell you what, I know a Spring Peeper when I hear one. PEEP! In an instant the dark faded to light. Dusk to dawn. Gloom to cheer.

A spring peeper in the midst of the dark winter evening is a sign of awakening life. Do you see the disparity here? In the dark season, the new season yawns. Spring peepers are called spring peepers for a reason. The peep is a signal. Peepers usher in, with their ever expanding chorus, spring. It’s awakening life.

The bird and the spring peeper are rousings of rebirth. The rebirth of a season. In our area this rebirth happens four times a year. This winter, in the gray and the darkness, I was privy to the dawn of spring. Oh, it’s not a privilege only for me, awakening life is for all to see.

Awakening life. Awaken from your slumber. From your hibernation. From the death of winter to the life of spring. Sometimes the gray and dark are all we can see. But that’s not all we are meant to see. We are meant to see the new life. We can be awakened in the complete stillness of winter. Sometimes it just has to be that quiet to hear the tweet and the peep.

“Quiet down!” Suddenly the wind stopped, and there was a great calm…
And they were filled with awe
Mark 4:39

In the darkness of that night, in the quieting, something happened. Jesus revealed. The Disciples awakened.

Be silent, and know that I am God!
I will be honored by every nation.
I will be honored throughout the word!
Psalm 49:10

Be silent… Be still…Be awakened…

We have seen his majestic splendor with our own eyes…We ourselves heard the voice when we were there with him on the holy mountain.
2 Peter 1:16, 18

Seeing and hearing his majesty, Peter and his friends were awakened…

We can plow through life, through the gray, through the dark, sometimes without ever hearing the tweet or the peep. Sometimes without ever being awakened to life, without rebirth, without recognizing the nod from the bird and the frog, without ever hearing His voice. If only we can quiet our hearts to hear God’s revelation, we too can be awakened to a new season in life.

Some study I’ve recently been doing has led me to question my motives. What causes me to think the way I think? What causes me to do what I do? What causes me to say what I say? What causes me to act the way I act? Oh, you say, that’s easy. Jesus. The right answer for everything. Righto! But…let’s just get honest.

Is that always true? Is Jesus always my motivation? Is that enough of a motivator? Gasp! Well, of course it is…how could you ask such a thing? Hush your mouth, you say. Well, speaking for myself only, I’m wondering if that’s always true or even a little bit true. If I drill down on myself, ashamedly, I say, no, it’s just not true, sometimes not even a little bit.

It’s so hard to ask ourselves the hard questions, that we rarely do. But, it’s critical that we do. Oh sure, it’s always easier to question others’ motives – I see a tiny speck of dust through my big log! Owww, stop beating yourself up, you say. Stop beating me up, you say. I throw no punches at you I don’t first throw at myself! Why is it important to contemplate these things, you say? Because as followers of Christ, we must realize that He will and does question our motives.

They say, “The Lord does not see; the God of Jacob pays no heed.
Take heed, you senseless ones among the people;
you fools, when will you become wise?
Does he who implanted the ear not hear?
Does he who formed the eye not see?
Does he who disciplines nations not punish?
Does he who teaches man lack knowledge?
The Lord knows the thoughts of man; he know they are futile.
Psalm 94:7-11

He says it right there, “The Lord knows the thoughts of man…” Does anyone else feel like they’ve just had a tooth extracted without novocaine? I don’t know about you, but, when I really think about it, the thought that He knows my thoughts makes me want to avoid eye contact and maybe throw up a little in my mouth. You too?

We are called to check our motives over and over. Why? Because we’re sinful folks. We just are. Because, if everything we say, everything we do, everything we are is not to glorify God, our motives are wrong and we need some soulful consideration, or reconsideration.

And whatever you do, whether in word of deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Colossians 3:17

Why do we do it all in the name of Jesus? To bring Him glory! Are we genuinely motivated by Christ, or by our own selfish desires? Ouch, another extraction.

The plain and simple is that as Kingdom people, everything we do and say should be Godly motivated.

If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and every. Amen.
1 Peter 4:11

We are not going to always get it right. Sin is subtle. It sometimes masks itself as Godly motives when sometimes they’re simply Bethly or Youly motives. Our life paths will be fraught with all kinds of motivators. Some are obviously bad. Some are very good, but not very God. We will stumble, but because of His promise, we will not fall. If we stay on His path, which is the only saving motivation, He will be glorified.

The evil one is crafty. He uses the ungodly motives of our hearts and minds to lure us from the path. Clinging to Jesus will allow us to push ourselves down as the motivator and for Jesus to be raised as our motivator, all for His glory. Let’s commit to the glory. Not ours, but His.

To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy—to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.
Jude 24-25

I’m still hung up on those trees…

As I looked out on the trees laying by our deck — we might be looking at that tree carnage a long time — I thought about how the downing of those trees changed our landscape, our view. We used to look out on the one tree and remark about how it obstructed our view of the front field. We had planned to take it down eventually, but it’s still a little sad that it’s gone along with the tree beside it. Just as the view looking toward the field is different, the view from the barn looking at the house, is quite different too. Very open.

Those fallen trees used to shield the house and gave the yard a neatish border. When we finish the work that the wind began, we will be sky-wide open on the east side. I know it will have its benefits, but it makes me feel a little naked on the west, a little unprotected, a little vulnerable. I will miss those trees. I loved them. Our view has changed. Oh, it’s not the end of the world, they are trees, renewable resources. Of course, new growth will take a bit. Trees are slow growers. Still, it looks a little different.

The Bible is full of changing scenery. The change of landscape, the change of the lay of the land, is not always a bad thing.

By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob who were heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.
Hebrews 11:8-10

Abraham, as well as Isaac and Jacob, were called to change scenery. To view a new landscape. No doubt they felt vulnerable, I mean come on, they were living in tents! Furthermore, or maybe most importantly, they had no idea where they were going. At God’s call to each of them, they obeyed and went, though they didn’t know fully what the landscape would look like. They trusted.

Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night the Lord drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left.
Exodus 14:21-22

Talk about a change of scenery! From wet to dry. From floatable to walkable. From vulnerable to safety. From death to life. The powerful hand of God changed life’s landscape for the Israelites. The powerful hand of God can change life’s landscape for us too. Not only can He, He will. Isaiah foretold.

Look! I am creating new heavens and a new earth—so wonderful that no one will even think about the old pones anymore. Be glad; rejoice forever in my creation! And look! I will create Jerusalem as a place of happiness. Her people will be a source of joy.
Isaiah 65:17-18

New heavens and a new earth. Talk about a change of scenery.

But we are looking forward to the new heavens and new earth he has promised, a world where everyone is right with God.
2 Peter 3:13

Peter speaks Isaiah, and John speaks Jesus Christ, through God, from an angel. It’s a message for all time.

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw a Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”
Revelation 21:1-4

Wow. A new earth. A Godly earth. Talk about a landscape change. A re-recreation. I don’t know about you, but I’m looking forward to that new view. It might be a little dicey getting to the new view, but…a new earth. No more pain, no more hurting, no more hate, no more violence, no more killing, no more anger, no more evil, no more lostness, no more fighting, no more suffering, no more…a new earth. The scenery will change. God will live with us! Think about that for a minute. It’s certainly a different perspective, isn’t it? Isn’t that something to look forward to?

For if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved.
Romans 10:9-10

There’s only one way to experience that new view, that new scenery, by confessing that Jesus is Lord. Oh sure, confessing is humbling, it makes us feel vulnerable, exposed, but what do you want your eternal view to be? This world will definitely pass away, it is temporary. It’s in The Book. But just like our fathers before, trusting in Him, the One who will live among us for all eternity, throughout the changing scenery of our life, will enable us to experience an eternal view…Why wouldn’t we want that?

The wind blew. Coming from the west. It began out of nowhere. A soft breeze, a little swirling of the clouds. At first, the breeze didn’t seem to be a problem. A clean the leaves out of the flower bed breeze. Those are always good. It was a sun shining, breeze blowing, flag billowing kind of day. We remarked at the beauty. At some point though, things changed. The sky became a little ominous, from sun gold to gray, you know the look. The breeze picked up and it was wind storm watch. As the day progressed, the momentum of the wind picked up and we were at wind storm warning. The soft gentle breeze had turned to a wind advisory before we knew what was going on. Batten down the hatches, mates.

One thing I noticed about the wind storm was the sound. The wind usually pops over the mountain and flows right down Clock Makers Way. Like a child’s slide. You can actually hear it when it tops the mountain. Then as it flows down the driveway, gaining speed and filling all the empty space all around it sounds like a freight train barreling by our house. No kidding. The force of the wind was so intense I prayed our windows would hold as our curtains danced to the 66 mph tune.

The wind can be refreshing on a hot summer day. The wind can dry the saturated surface. The wind can sweep earth’s floor. I’ve often wondered if I opened my front and back doors on a windy day, if that could be considered vacuuming? The dirt wouldn’t be sucked up, it would just blow through.

It is a mighty force, though. The destructive forces of the wind are amazing. Things in its path are broken, uprooted, torn, ripped, fallen, crushed. We move our lawn chairs into the garage, we take down our flagpoles, we move our cars from under the trees, we try to build up, build around, and protect smaller outdoor stuff. But sometimes, there’s nothing you can do to prevent the damage, or is there?

See that tree there? It’s been there since we moved in seven years ago. It’s a great tree, or was. A big sugar maple momma. It did its part, it shielded that side of our house from the sun, and provided a cool sitting spot in the summer. It also provided a little protection from the wind. But, it was no match for the 66 mph song. Why not? Because it was rotten inside, soft. Oh, it didn’t look like it, it was beautiful on the outside, but decaying on the inside. It was not strong enough to withstand the winds. We had warning, over the last year or so, we had a branch down here, a crack in the trunk there. But, when the really strong winds came, it simply could not stand.

Just like trees on a windy day, life has destructive forces that can tear us apart and leave us broken, battered, sometimes limbless and cracked. Many are self-imposed, all are harmful. We are neglectful, decaying, sick in spirit and we simply can’t stand. When gale force blows a dying tree will break. There will almost always be warning signs.

I’m not a treeologist, I can’t tell you how to keep a tree from rotting, from decaying, from dying. I do know, without a shadow of a doubt though how we can keep from rotting, from decaying, from dying from the inside out. How? The right answer to everything, Jesus!

You don’t have to wait for the End. I am, right now, Resurrection and Life. The one who believes in me, even though he or she dies, will live. And everyone who lives believing in me does not ultimately die at all.
John 11:25-26

See that? We don’t have to wait until the end to be alive! His resurrecting power is resurrecting us, right now. Do we live as Believers? Jesus told Martha, if you live like that, you are alive, you don’t have to wait to be resurrected to be alive. What’s that mean? We are to live inside like Believers. Not old, rotted wood, that may crumble at any time. Not like we’re just waiting for the next branch to fall. But live like we know whom we have believeth and are persuaded that He is able! Live as Believers on the inside, allowing His resurrection power to work in and through us. Doing so will enable us to sway to the winds of life that blow our way.

We are pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may be revealed in our mortal body. So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.
2 Corinthians 4:8-12

The wind storms of life will blow us and we may lose a leaf here and there, a twig here and there, a branch here and there, but we will never perish. We may be bent but we will never break. Just as a rotted tree, has death working within it, so is an unbelieving life. We know what will ultimately happen to that tree. The evidence is above. It may not be an instant death, it may happen branch by branch. But we also know what will happen to a believing life, we will never die!

Do you ever wonder how God processes all of our prayers? I know He’s God, but I wondered. I’m one person and I know how many prayers I whisper a day. Prayers for help. Prayers for hope. Prayers for healing. Prayers for justice. Prayers for mercy. Prayers for grace. Prayers for others. Prayers for change. Prayers for clarity. Prayers for provisions. Prayers for direction. Prayers for guidance. Prayers for answers. Then there are those that just can’t be put into words. The achings of my heart, of your heart, those anguished desperate pleas.

And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of God’s people. Revelations 5:8

Golden bowls full of incense that are filled with my prayers, with your prayers, with all prayers. Dwell on that a minute. Every one of my prayers, every one of your prayers, the incense. Close your eyes and picture that. Priceless containers of gold overflowing with every single utterance to your Creator. Can you see your prayers landing in the bowl? The bowl of incense. Those prayers that are the essence of who we have become in Him, offered up to Him, poured out to Him, laid at His feet. It takes vulnerableness to bow low before our God. All of that vulnerableness, that opening of ourselves, is a sweet aroma to Him.

Another angel, who had a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense to offer, with the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar before the throne. The smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of the saints, went up before God from the angel’s hand. Revelations 8:3-4

Close your eyes again. Be there. The smoke of the incense slowly swirling and threading it’s way upward, rising to the throne of God. Inhale the sweet aroma hanging in the air, just lingering there, weaving through our prayers, enveloping them, our prayers that have been saved, gathered and placed on the golden altar. How much love is that?

Our prayers are an offering, a sacrifice. An offering of ourselves to Him. A humbling of ourselves to Him. An opening of ourselves to Him. A saying, I can’t, but You can. I’m not, but You are. Praying to Him shows we need Him. Calling to Him shows we trust Him. Relying on Him shows that we simply can’t live without Him. This vulnerableness, humbleness, openness demonstrates that.

O Lord, I call to you; come quickly to me.
Hear my voice when I call you.
May my prayer be set before you like incense;
May the lifting up of my hands be like the evening sacrifice.
Psalm 141:1-2

Close your eyes one more time.

And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside. Luke 1:10

The incense is being burned. It is the vehicle on which our prayers rise. Higher and higher they move with the smoke, instantly heard and seen by God, but treasured forever in the golden bowl. How much love is that?

We all roughly know the story of David and Goliath. David a boy of 16-19 years old, hit a man nine feet tall with a stone and dropped him. In a nutshell, that’s how the story goes, right?

Then Goliath, a Philistine champion from Gath, came out of the Philistine ranks to face the forces of Israel. He was a giant of a man, measuring over nine feet tall! He wore a bronze helmet and a coat of mail that weighed 125 pounds. He also wore bronze leggings, and he slung a bronze javelin over his back. The shaft of his spear was as heavy and thick as a weaver’s bean, tipped with an iron spearhead that weighed fifteen pounds. An armor bearer walked ahead of him carrying a huge shield. 1 Samuel 17:4-7

Goliath was one huge dude. It’s hard to even imagine what he looked like. He was certainly intimidating. He was also confident, full of himself. Twice a day for 40 days (sounds like the wilderness again, doesn’t it?) Goliath would come out and taunt the Israelites. They were scared to death. But it took something very small in the hands of someone very faithful to remedy the situation. One stone. Not a rock, or a boulder, but a small stone.

The Lord involves ordinary people when he does extraordinary things. David, powered by God felled Goliath with just one stone. The stone, without the power of God would never have sufficed. You see, it wasn’t the stone. It was the power of God through David. Just like when Moses led the people to the sea, it wasn’t Moses who parted the waters. It was the power of God through Moses. Over and over in the scriptures – I feel like I say that a lot, but it’s true – the Lord gives us examples of His mighty power at work through us. He worked through David. He worked through Moses.  And others…

One of them was Lydia from Thyatira, a merchant of expensive purple cloth. She was a worshiper of God. As she listened to us, the Lord opened her heart and she accepted what Paul was saying. Acts 16:14

He worked through Paul. Paul was the messenger, but the Lord did the work.

“When I was with you before, I told you that everything written about me by Moses and the prophets and in the Psalms must all come true.” Then he opened their minds to understand these many Scriptures. “Yes, it was written long ago that the Messiah must suffer and die and rise again for the dead on the third day. With my authority, take this message of repentance to all the nations, beginning in Jerusalem. There is forgiveness of sins for all who turn to me.”
Luke 24:44-45

It happened again. The scriptures held the message, but Jesus did the work. He opened the minds of the disciples to understand the scriptures. Had he not done so, the scriptures would have just been words on a scroll, nice stories, history.

How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news of peace and salvation, the news that the God of Israel reigns! Isaiah 52:7

It happened again. The feet on the mountain brought the news, but Jesus did the work. Isaiah foretold of the deliverance to come. He became sin who was sinless in our place so that we may be saved. Hallelujah! That’s good news those feet were taking everywhere. We are to be tellers of the peace, salvation and deliverance that has come!

The smallest tract may be the stone in David’s sling.
In the hands of Christ, it may bring down a giant soul.
Robert Murray McCheyne

That’s how it will work with us as well. The smallest word. The smallest gift. The smallest gesture. The smallest act. All may bring down a giant soul. Not a comparable sized giant, not an expert sling shot operator, but a faithful shepherd, and Jesus will do the work. Not because of what we do, but because of who He is. We speak only to the ear, but God speaks to the heart.

Don’t let yesterday take up too much of today.
Will Rogers

Great thought, isn’t it? I try to hang these thought provoking, attitude adjusting signs around the office, mainly for myself and so others can hold me to it. I’m hopeful that it might brighten the day for some and offer some small encouragement to others. This sign has been up for about six weeks. I see it every day, about 36 times, as I go to the first floor. I’m the one that posted it, walked by it about 1,080 times, and still didn’t actually understand it until yesterday. Well, I’ll be a buffalo.

Do your yesterdays take up too much of your today? My yesterdays take up way too much of my time. For that matter, my tomorrows do too! Here’s the thing about yesterdays – they are over! Done. Yesterday is dead and gone. We can’t go back. We can’t do over. We can’t change them.

Oh, how we’d like to sometimes, that’s why our yesterdays take up so much of our todays. Those situations where we didn’t do what we were supposed to do and we did do what we weren’t supposed to do. Those Paulish things. Like when the jaws of life have to be used to remove my foot from my mouth, repeatedly, or when I pass by and over a hurting one, repeatedly. Those thoughts are like records, yep, I’m that old. If we allow them to, those yesterday moments play over and over in our minds. What a waste of a good moment. A moment that can never be gotten back.

How much time do we really waste in our yesterdays? Thoughts of those delightful things of yesterday and thoughts of those regretful things of yesterday? You see, we can waste just as much time on the delightful. What, you say? True, I say. Haven’t you ever had such a delightful experience that you’ve dwelt on so much that the experience gets skewed a little in our minds? I have. What ends up happening is that my mind blows it so out of proportion, that my current day, nor any day to come could ever live up to the unicorns and cotton candy.

Same is true for regretful experiences. Why do those seem to play more often and much louder in our minds than the delightful moments? Shoulda, coulda, woulda’s. Why’s? If’s?

If we are not on our guard, the regretful experiences can outweigh the delightful experiences and the delightful experiences can cause us to be out of touch with reality. It’s really a balancing act. Do we really want to be stuck in the past anyway? The reality is that the past is never as great as it’s remembered and it’s never as awful as it’s remembered.

If I spent as much time on my todays as I do rehashing my yesterday’s today, I’d have more time in my todays to do what I’m supposed to be doing today, without being stuck in yesterday!?!?

In her book Jesus Calling, Sarah Young says:

Rehearsing your troubles results in experiencing them many times, whereas you are meant to go through them only when they actually occur. Do not multiply your suffering in this way!

That’s profound. You see, we do rehearse, don’t we? But, when we are rehearsing, when we dwell, when we dramatize, the time spent on living today is spent on living in a yesterday that’s already been lived and we just can’t be used by God. Why? Because yesterday is our idol, good or bad. We can only have one thing or one person to worship. God.

He’s the One who separated the days. They are not continuous. Every day is a new day.

Together these made up one day. Genesis 1:4
This happened on the second day. Genesis 1:8
This all happened on the third day. Genesis 1:13
This all happened on the fourth day. Genesis 1:19
This all happened on the fifth day. Genesis 1:23
This all happened on the sixth day. Genesis 1:31
God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy. Genesis 2:3

Every day is separate, distinct. Every day different. Every day a new creation. Every day new mercies.

Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each day.

Lamentations 3:23

The Lord said don’t look to the past, look to the future. I am the Lord. I made a dry path through the sea. I drew the armies beneath the waves.

But forget all that – it is nothing compared to what I am going to do.

Isaiah 43:18

Forget the former stuff. Move on. Don’t live in the past hurts, past disobediences, past fears, the past waves. Live in today. Live expectantly. Stop rehearsing the past.

I—yes, I alone—am the one who blots out your sins for my own sake and will never think of them again. Isaiah 43:25

If God does not rehearse our yesterdays, and He would have every right to – I mean, He’s God, why should we? Our pasts are nothing compared to what our futures can be. Don’t let your yesterday interfere with what God has in store for you today. Onward! Forward! Upward!

This is the day the Lord has made.
We will rejoice and be glad in it. Psalm 118:24

This morning the worst-best and I went for a walk. As we’re walking along I’m crying out. Completely heartsick, grieving, seeking answers, begging for eyes and ears to open, asking for the Lord to come and deliver, even so come, right? No, wait — stop. Not yet. We need more time.

As we tromp through the soggy soil, limbs whacking, burrs sticking, briars  briaring, through soaked eyes, I spy something up ahead on the other side of the creek. Tears can be distorting, but Holy cannoli! This simply cannot be happening. It’s a Snowy Owl!!! Do you see it? A once in a lifetime chance. It’s just crazy. I snap the shot. My heart pitter patters as I think about running to the house to call The National Audubon Society. I already have visions of the worst-best gazing into the sun streaked sky in her perfect worst-best pose for the article. Better yet, I’ll call the Peterson of Peterson’s Field Guide to Birds of North America. Peterson’s going to trip.

I try to quiet you know who, and we tiptoe – I tiptoed, she clomped, and we inched closer. Closer, closer, closer. But wait! Something was not right. The Snowy Owl was not moving. My heart sank. My first thought is that it’s dead and frozen into an upright position! Oh no, poor bird. My second thought is that maybe it’s deaf and it just can’t hear us. Oh no, poor bird. Ok. If it’s deaf it must also be blind because it would head out if it saw us. Oh no, poor bird. We keep inching.

I should have known something was not right. The worst-best and I are anything but quiet in the woods, the Snowy Owl had plenty of warnings – slobber sounds, panting, tags tinkling – and the dog wasn’t being very quiet either. We round a stump, catch a side view, and sink in disappointment. It’s not a Snowy Owl, it’s a rotting tree limb. Oh my goodness, we were so disappointed. There goes Peterson’s. No posing for the worst-best for the Audubon article.

Agatha Christie once wrote: “Things are not always what they seem.” Duh! Clearly. My Snowy Owl was a decaying tree limb in disguise. What a goof I am! I was easily confused. Why? Because I don’t know my birds. You see, when I got home and checked out the Field Guide, I learned that the Snowy Owl is actually an artic bird that nests in Alaska, Northern Canada and Eurasia. Shenandoah, we’re not in the arctic anymore. Isn’t that such as life?

I hope you will be patient with me as I keep on talking like a fool. Please bear with me. I am jealous for you with the jealousy of God himself. For I promised you as a pure bride to one husband, Christ. But I fear that somehow you will be led away from your pure and simple devotion to Christ, just as Eve was deceived by the serpent. You seem to believe whatever anyone tells you, even if they preach about a different Jesus than the one we preach, or a different Spirit than the one you received, or a different kind of gospel than the one you believed. 2 Corinthians 11:1-4

The Bible tells us over and over again that things are not always what they seem. Do not be deceived. Just as Peterson’s Guide must be our authority for birds in North America, the Bible must be our authoritative guide of God’s Word. Afterall, He is the author which makes Him the authority. The Word of God, the Absolute Truth, tells us over and over to be on guard.

Be careful! Watch out for attacks from the Devil, your great enemy. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for some victim to devour. Take a firm stand against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your Christian brothers and sisters all over the world are going through the same kind of suffering you are. 1 Peter 5:8-9

Do we know when Satan’s attacking? If we are in Christ, we should assume that Satan’s always lurking. Are we on guard or are we content?

Dear friends, do not believe everyone who claims to speak by the Spirit. You must test them to see if the spirit they have comes from God. For there are many false prophets in the world. 1 John 4:1

Yikes! Those are some strong words from The Word. How do we know if the message we’re hearing is really from the Lord? If we know our Bibles, we will know. If we know the heart of God, we will know. If we believe Jesus’s teachings, we will know. If we seek, we will find. Don’t be mislead. Satan is crafty. He uses our lives against us. He uses are weaknesses against us. He uses our fears against us. He uses our lack of knowledge against us. He uses our complacency against us. He uses everything ungodly about us against us.

Do we believe everything we hear or see? Trust but verify. Who said that? Trust what you hear, but verify. Trust what you see, but verify. Verify everything in relationship to the teachings of The Word of God. We are all responsible for working out our own salvation and not relying on someone else or something else to do it for us.

Just like Paul taught the Colossian Church to follow the Word of God, he teaches us too:

Let the words of Christ, in all their richness, live in your hearts and make you wise. Use his words to teach and counsel each other. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. Colossians 3:16

Start with the words of Christ. Allow them to live in your hearts and make you wise. Use these words to teach each other. Be thankful. Be on guard. Be a student of God’s Word.

Please, please, please don’t ever take my word for it. We are all responsible for ourselves. Read your Bible. Know your Bible. Live your Bible. Obey your Bible. Check every word you hear against The Word. Things are not always what they seem.