Devotionals – Page 3

August 25, 2012

Arise

…and last of all, as to one untimely born,
He appeared to me, also.
1 Corinthians 15:8

My grandma called them “jump-up lilies.” They are bulbs that yield a mass of long, smooth leaves in the spring. The leaves are prolific and green. But for all their promise, they die back in early summer without so much as a single bloom.

What a disappointment. The plant spends the majority of the summer dying slowly and looking unsightly. Finally, I clean all the dead leaves away, leaving bare dirt where they grew.

Done. Finished. No sign of life. Definitely past hope.

But I know better. I’ve had these lilies for years, and I know the best is yet to come.

In late summer, when the rest of the garden is summer-worn, I look out one day and find blooms where there was not even a hint of life. These lilies spring up so quickly, it appears they have leapt out of the ground. They always fill my heart with joy. They don’t seem to care that they are breaking all the rules. They burst out of the ground at the bidding of their Creator the moment the blooms are mature.

The apostle Paul was the one called by God after the Lord had already been crucified, resurrected, and returned to the Father. He compared himself to one “born out of due time” (NKJV). But God’s timing is always flawless. God knew what would best give Paul the humility he needed to become a vessel of honor and servant of high calling.

Maybe you once grew up green and full of promise. Maybe your faith has been scorched and endured so many dry days, you have died back to the dirt. There is an empty field where you expected a harvest. Disappointment has killed your joy. It appears nothing has come of your struggles to live for Him. More than once, you’ve been tempted to give up.

But deep inside, beneath the apparent barrenness, there is life. God is at work. He has plans to bring you into a place of fruitfulness at the perfect moment.

Wait for it…wait for it…

It’s coming. Joy is on the way. Hang on with all your strength to every promise in God’s Word. You have not been abandoned or forgotten. On the contrary, you’re growing just as He planned.

You were created for this time. You are God’s workmanship, a thing of beauty, awaiting the moment He commands, “Arise.”

So hang on. Wait in faith. Believe in a faithful Creator to finish the amazing work He is doing in you. It will be worth every tear, each desperate prayer, all your trust. The seasons are changing; the earth is stirring.

Arise.

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Devotionals

April 30, 2012

The Battle for Renewal

Then He showed a river of the water of life, clear as crystal,
coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb, in the middle of its street.
On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kind of fruit, yielding its fruit every month;
and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
Revelation 22:1-2

Winter has never won the battle of the seasons, but this year it seemed to have its cold, gnarly fingers firmly clamped around the ground and my heart. The garden lay in dead disarray. My life followed a similar trend. Heartrending situations with my family and friends gripped us in an icy chill of relentless drama and tragedy.

Faith ran daily to the window to look for signs of life on my horizon. It was usually met with gray skies and new storms. It seriously looked like spring itself had given up and taken off for a long southern vacation.

Then I began to notice that although the storms still buffeted us, spring seemed to have a change of heart and decided to show up, after all. It was still cold, and uninviting outside my window. I was delighted to discover that the daffodils had gotten the memo, though, along with the hyacinths.

Once it decided to commit to a change of seasons, spring braved the weather and cued the greenery. The cold raised a challenge with a blast of hail. Tender life, having gained new courage, marched forward to undaunted.

Every year, the battle for renewal rages in the earth. Each year, death appears to triumph over the promise of resurrection along with our dreams. We know, however, that life always wins.

Today it is gray and cold again here. But I can look out my window and see that spring is going to conquer. In fact, it already has. My garden is blooming.

There are still parts of my life which haven’t felt the sun’s warm rays. I tell my impatient heart that renewal is on its way. God encourages us to look not to the daily storms, but the inevitable thaw what will arrive.

Winter will end. Spring will come.

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Devotionals

April 20, 2012

Rooted in Reality, Part 3: We are De Branch, Not De Vine

Remember He is de vine, and you are de branch.
-Keith Green

I am the vine, you are the branches;
he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit,
for apart from Me you can do nothing.
John 15:5

My husband loves trees. During the thirty-plus years we have lived on our country lane, we have planted well over a hundred shade and fruit trees. Some of the fruit trees in his modest orchard were called “no name” trees, meaning the actual variety of tree was unknown before selling. If a person didn’t mind a surprise or two, the trees didn’t cost as much as labeled trees. We could tell the general type of tree each was, like “apple,” but we didn’t know what variety of apples we had until the trees bore fruit for the first time.

Some plants are hard to tell apart just from the leaves. But the fruit and flower of a plant always give it away. Jesus told us, as recorded in Matthew 7:16-20, that we can recognize people in the same way – by what shows up at harvest time. In fact, He tells us in this passage that it is impossible for a bad tree to produce good fruit or for a good tree to produce bad fruit.

Fruit is what we are. We can’t fabricate fruit. Fruit is the natural result at the end of a season of growth. No matter how well a thistle grows or how much it is fertilized, it’s going to produce thistles. This is why we can never reform ourselves. We have to become grafted into the Root of Jesse. We are grafted in when we accept the sacrifice of Jesus for the mess we have made of our own gardens. We are literally cut away from a life of sin and grafted into the life of God.

And then we “abide.” The Greek word used for “abide” simply means to remain, stay, move in with, or live with. It’s a relational word. Don’t try to change yourself. Move in with Jesus. If I want to exhibit godly character, I have to be planted in God. He doesn’t want a new, improved version of Pam. He wants Pam out of the way completely. He wants me to die to who I am and become a conduit for the life of God, so that in my actions and words others may catch a glimpse of the Divine.

I wanna die, and let You give Your life to me,
so I might live.
-Keith Green

…I die daily.
-the apostle Paul

How do we abide?

1. By thinking and acting relationally, not religiously. We focus on association with Christ, not mere imitation.

2. By diving into His Word. It’s the living letter from the Father to His children. His Word cleanses, teaches, inspires, and restores. It’s the food for our souls.

3. By listening to the uncomfortable nudging of the Holy Spirit to keep us pruned back. That way we won’t stray into unhealthy ground. Our conscience really is our best friend.

4. By cultivating healthy relationships and habits. Abiding doesn’t mean just lying around. There is work involved, too.

God gave His very best in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ to give us all we need to flourish. May we plant ourselves in Him and grow up to be everything He has planned for us.

O taste and see that the LORD is good;
How blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!
Psalm 34:8

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Devotionals

April 6, 2012

Rooted in Reality, Part 2: What Lies Are Sinking You?

What really matters is what happens in us, not to us.

-James W. Kennedy

Scientists now say that a series of slits, not a giant gash, sank the Titanic. The opulent, 900-foot cruise ship sank in 1912 on its first voyage from England to New York. Fifteen hundred people died in the worst maritime disaster of the time.

The theory most people hold is that the ship hit an iceberg, opening up a huge gash in the side of the ship. But an international team of divers and scientists recently probed through the wreckage, buried in mud two-and-a-half miles deep, with sound waves. They found that the damage was surprisingly small. Instead of one big gash, they found six narrow slits across the six watertight holds.

Like the tragedy that happened to the behemoth liner, it’s those small compromises to our protective armor that threaten to sink us on our journey to find and live in integrity. In fact, it’s their insidious nature that makes them so dangerous. If we had one huge assault on our faith with which to contend, we would be alarmed and rise to the challenge. But the small blows go largely unnoticed, barely blips on our spiritual radar, until they have weakened us and breached our defenses.

This is why it’s so important to be accountable to God and trusted people around us to help us see the danger signs that we’re going down. The still, small voice of the Holy Spirit will be our guide if we’ll just listen to Him. To ignore His voice is like turning off the radio broadcast of icebergs ahead because we don’t want to change course. We can ignore the warnings, but we’ll hit the ice just the same.

A simple acronym can help us stay tuned into the leading of God:

L Listen for the excuses you tell yourself.

What reasons do you make up to give yourself permission to do something you know is wrong?

I Identify the weak spots in your faith, the ones that make you vulnerable to temptation.

What do you fear? What makes you angry? What causes you to feel out of control?

E Examine your temptations.

Discover why you give in over and over to a particular temptation. Identify ways that have been successful in the past to help you successfully navigate around that danger zone.

S Seek the truth.

Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me and know my anxious thoughts;
And see if there be any hurtful way in me, And lead me in the everlasting way.
Psalm 139:23 NASB

It’s no good to attempt to navigate in the dark. Light reveals our path. It also reveals the obstacles in our way. But that’s good, because it’s better to deal with changing course than to live in ignorance. Ignorance leads to destruction; truth brings us to safety. God wants us to take an honest look at our lives under the light of His purity. God’s Word is the source of the light for our journey and the best way to open our hearts to the work of the Spirit.

Never underestimate the power of the Scriptures to cleanse, guide, and strengthen. God is the best Captain ever. He’s been this way before, and we can trust Him with our lives.

Your word is lamp to my feet
And a light to my path.
Psalm 119:105

Next week: Rooted in Reality: Building Character – Part 3

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Devotionals

March 27, 2012

Rooted in Reality: Building Character, Part 1

You will know them by their fruits.
Matthew 7:16

Several years ago, the Dallas Morning News reported that an elderly North Dallas couple, the Davenports, were sitting at home one quiet evening, enjoying a delicious meal. As they finished up, a burglar broke into their house, pointed a gun at them, and demanded money.

While Mrs. Davenport frantically searched through her purse for some money, the burglar noticed that the television was on, so he asked Mr. Davenport what they were watching. Mr Davenport replied, “The 700 Club.”

“Are y’all Christians?” the burglar asked.

“Yes,” Mr. Davenport replied.

The burglar said in all seriousness, “Me, too.”

It’s easy to be more than a little cynical of this man’s profession of faith, because we know faith is supposed to go hand-in-hand with a lifestyle change. Jesus used the example of plants to help us understand this concept.

Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes, nor figs from thistles, are they?
So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit.
A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit.
Matthew 7:16-18

The reality is this: It is our character, not our words alone, that reveals who we are to others. Character is who we really are. It’s the essence of our being. It is, as D.L. Moody said, “What you are in the dark.” Without character, we can only fool people for so long. Without character, we can’t fool God at all.

What’s so important about character?

1. Character sets us apart.

In this day, age, and culture, people constantly strive to set themselves apart from the crowd. Some of us use shocking dress and behavior; some of us climb the rungs of the social ladder; some of us search for money and power. In reality, though, the lower elements of humanity are so prominent today it is the person of integrity and pure character that stands out from the rest. Deep inside, we long for someone to show us something real and solid and clean.

2. Character creates trust.

Solid relationships have to be founded on trust. Trust is the oil that keeps society moving forward and reduces friction from personalities clashing.

3. Character promotes excellence.

Excellence in behavior does more than promote the welfare of an individual. It is the glue that cements the higher ideals of families, the workplace, the political sphere, and nations into a cohesive unit.

4. Character gives us staying power.

It carries us through the tough times, because the same self-discipline we need to cultivate integrity also keeps us going when we are weary and discouraged. Ironically, trials are also the very tools God uses to solidify our character.

And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations,
knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance;
and perseverance, proven character;
and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint,
because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts
through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
Romans 5:3-5

Like a good piece of pottery, we are “hardened” by the fire of trial. Someone has said fire either destroys or hardens that which it touches. When we emerge from the fire of hardship and suffering with our faith intact, our character has been “proven.”

5. Character extends our influence.

Everyone wants to have an influence on others. But without character, we are simply performing for others and competing to be noticed. If we want to have a lasting impact on others for good, it’s going to be the godly character we exhibit that will shout above the din.

So how do we cultivate godly character? Next week we’ll identify and discover how to implement L.I.E.S. in our search to live in integrity.

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Devotionals

March 20, 2012

The Flower of Forgiveness

Be kind to one another, tender-hearted,
forgiving each other,
just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.
Ephesians 4:32 NASB

Forgiving the misdeeds of others against us would be easy if it were as simple and satisfying as accepting their humble apologies as they came crawling to us in abject brokenness. It would be (we imagine) an act of mercy to relieve the suffering of such penitents. But that scene is the stuff of fantasy conjured up by a wounded heart, rarely rooted in reality. Humanity, as a whole, is pretty good at making excuses for its actions and words. We’d rather enter our houses justified in our own minds than make the painful trip to humility’s doorstep to ask for forgiveness. So we stand at mutual arm’s length as we hold tight to our respective territories and await capitulation from the other side.

Forgiveness is the gift we love to withhold from the undeserving.

But it never feels right, does it? Holding on to the offenses of others against us keeps us captive to a constant replay. We relive the pain; we bleed all over again. But this time the wounds are self-inflicted as we cut ourselves in an effort to release the pain we should be releasing in three simple words: “I forgive you.”

During His time on earth, Jesus actively sought to extend forgiveness to everyone who has or ever will exist. He entered time and space and lived His entire life with the express purpose of giving us a chance to receive forgiveness. One of His last acts on the cross was to forgive his killers, executioners neither Roman nor Jew. The nails in Jesus’ body were put there by every dirty thought and action of His crowning creation:

You and me.

I did not ask for Him to come. I wasn’t worthy of His suffering for my wrongdoing. He forgave me long before I asked for or wanted his forgiveness. But as He waited all those years, He never once treated me like the undeserving person I am.

Throughout the centuries and to this day, He likewise extends the scepter of life to all who will reach out to touch it. As long as there is hope for repentance, He endures our blasphemies, taunts, and flagrant sins. The gift is extended; it is up to us to reach for it. We are all the undeserving; there is no one who has not needed forgiveness. Remembering our own frailties, our goal should be to live in a constant state of forgiveness, extending to others that which we have received.

Extending forgiveness frees us. What others do with the gift is their decision.

For if you forgive others for their transgressions,
your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
But if you do not forgive others,
then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.
Matthew 6:14-15 NASB

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Devotionals

March 4, 2012

When Fear Is at the Door

Fear knocked at the door. Faith answered. No one was there. – Unknown

Fear’s been knocking at the door a lot. Events over which I have no control have hounded me relentlessly this past year, leaving me to feel as if I am bobbing helplessly along in a swift river toward a massive waterfall – something like Bogey and Kate in African Queen. Except I have the drama without the glamour. Each day I have grimly pushed through the day’s challenges as I have tried to ignore the persistent pounding on my spirit’s door by fear.

Some days I totally give in to it, which was what happened this week. I discovered I had a nasty infection, followed by bad reactions to each of the two different antibiotics prescribed by my doctor. The one last night was particularly frightening. I debated about going to ER but settled instead on going to bed to wait out the night. My family prayed for me, released me from my share of the caregiving duties, and watched protectively as I snuggled under the comfort of my new throw (a Pier One Valentine’s gift from my dear husband) and tried to shut my eyes against the raging storm in my body.

But the greater storm was the one in my spirit. The physical pounding in my heart echoed the fear that emanated from behind the door of the unknown as it rattled the doorknob and threatened to jump out at me at any moment.

Just then, my husband came up bearing a small container of pure, extra-virgin olive oil from the kitchen. He slipped to my side and offered to anoint me as he prayed for me. I gladly accepted. He poured a bit out and touched it to my forehead as he prayed a simple but heartfelt prayer for healing. It was nothing grandiose or commanding – just a request to his God on behalf of his beloved.

The physical storm did not immediately stop, but the spiritual one subsided as that incomprehensible peace only the Spirit can give washed over me. My husband’s intercession was the reminder I needed that God is always in control. It was his faith going to the door for me and opening it to find nothing on the other side.

This morning I am much better. As I recuperate and rest on this Sunday morning, I think of the other doors and storms in my life and am reminded that our struggle is truly not a physical one, but one against the “flaming missiles of the evil one” (Eph. 6:16). In this age of sophistication and cynicism, I must never forget I do not war with what I see, but with the “spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Eph. 6:12). For those wars in our lives, we must put on the whole armor of God and walk in complete fearlessness, never forgetting we serve a big God who is alive, well, and fully in charge.

God is real; fear is the shadow.

Today may God strengthen and encourage you for whatever doors you face. As you surround yourself with His armor, my prayer is He will grant us all the courage to open those doors we face and dispel our fears. Who knows what opportunities for God’s service and glory lie behind them?

Not to fear is the armor. –Ulrich Zwingli

For God has not given us a spirit of fear,
but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
2 Timothy 1:7 NKJV

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Devotionals

February 21, 2012

Never Underestimate Jesus

…truly I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed,
you shall say to this mountain, “Move from here to there,” and it shall move;
and nothing shall be impossible to you.”
Matthew 17:20

It was an unexpected vacation of sorts, a rare thing for us. A weekend opened up, and we were relieved of our home and church duties just long enough to squeeze in a three-day trip to the coast. We jumped at the chance to see the ocean again.

We had to drive four hundred and eighty miles to our destination, and we soon settled in for the long haul. My husband set the car’s cruise control on the speed limit, and I cozied into my seat with some music and a bag of Fritos. It had been a decade since we had driven the Columbia Gorge, but it was familiar territory, since we had family living near the coast. The landscape had not changed much along the way.

Only two things marred the day: our sour attitudes starting out and the smoke from area fires that permeated everything. The pressure of trying to get everything ready on such short notice and without much sleep had left us both cranky. It didn’t help our moods that the first part of the trip was accompanied by dense smoke from a large wildfire. The whole world seemed to be on fire somewhere near the Blue Mountains, although we never actually saw flames. A stranglehold of gloom enveloped us as we drove on in irritable silence. The air cleared a bit along the Columbia, but a haze began again as we neared Hood River.

We had forgotten about the mountain. My husband saw it first, of course, because he had his eyes on the road. Then I saw it, too. Mount Hood, magnificent as always, rose up out of the haze as if it were too grand to be found wallowing in the lowlands with mortals like us. I had forgotten how impressive it is.

No matter how many times I travel that road, I always forget to look for it. It surprises me every time. Each time it emerges out of the valley just when I have traveled so long along the bottom land I forget it’s there.

Each time it reminds me that surprises do still happen; that God doesn’t have a jaded heart like I do; that He can place mountains where they don’t belong and give a thrill to this poor old valley-dweller.

A few years back, I had another reminder of that. Someone very important to us invited God into her life; someone who has been on our prayer list for many years. We had prayed for her so many times it became a familiar road, well-traversed and worn down in places. The choking smoke of unseen daily fires kept a dreary haze over the area and limited our vision. Still we continued on, praying routinely, increasingly sporadically, often faithlessly, more often than not with a sour and unbelieving attitude.

Then one day we turned a corner and came unexpectedly upon the majesty of God. Out of the haze of our valley we were surprised by the amazing grace of the Savior. True to His word, He took our tiny mustard seed of faith and moved a mountain for us. Right in front of our eyes arose a splendid, lovely, breath-taking spire of faith reaching toward heaven out of the heart of a young woman. The beauty of it caught us unawares and took our breath away.

How could I have forgotten? When will I ever learn? The next time I travel the Gorge, I will be surprised by Mount Hood. The next time God answers a prayer, I will be as amazed as if I had never seen such a thing before. Every time I forget the power, the glory, and the faithfulness of our God. And still for us, because of His great love, He moves the mountain.

Next week: A very special guest blog by Samantha Thorson. We are honored to have Samantha join us next week. If you enjoyed “Never Underestimate Jesus,” stop by and meet the lovely young woman featured in this post. She is now serving God in ministry and will be sharing with us. Expect to be blessed and challenged by her devotion to Christ and her thirst for the deep things of God.

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Devotionals

January 26, 2012

The God of Small Beginnings

For who has despised the day of small things? – Zechariah 4:10

You would think the King of the universe would love to do things in a big way, like humans do. We love doing things in a big way, and for a big audience. We yearn for the bright lights and those fifteen minutes of fame.

But God, who is fully capable of pulling off the grand show, appears instead to love small beginnings. Unlike His creation, He shuns the spotlight.

He populated an entire planet with two people fashioned from dirt and built a nation with a sheep-herder. He took a man from the dirty water of the Nile and made him a deliverer. He created soldiers from slaves and conquered whole kingdoms with simple acts of obedience.

He flattened tower walls with a shout of praise and sent fire from heaven at the sound of a prayer.

He called a shepherd boy from the hills and set him over an entire nation. He used David’s simple songs of anguish and praise to bring comfort to millions of hurting people for generations after him. He set a man upon the throne because he only asked for wisdom. He sent a Jewish captive to save her people from the plot of a powerful and deadly enemy.

When the appointed time came for the King to set foot in His kingdom, it was not the grand halls of earth that received His Majesty, but a cave. He didn’t arrive to the roar of adoring crowds, but to the wondering whispers of shepherds. He didn’t come in a blaze of glory, but under the light of a shimmering star.

The first Voice the earth heard from its King was not the triumphant shout of victory, but the wail of a baby. The first witnesses of His glory were His parents and some animals. He arrived surrounded by little warmth, light, or comfort. Instead, He brought all three with Him.

Out of prison cells across the centuries and from the cracked lips of suffering, God’s glory has emerged. Beaten, persecuted, despised, and weak, God’s people have always been the lowly canvas upon which He has painted His masterpiece of love. With small strokes of color poured out upon His palette with each life, He produces a work of breathtaking beauty and scope.

God rejoices in small beginnings because it gives Him a chance to work, a chance to be our strength, our comfort, our Deliverer. It offers Him the opportunity to fill the vacuum left by our nothingness. Since He can’t fill us with His glory when we’re already full of ourselves, smallness keeps us empty.

Thank God for small beginnings. May we always be small in our own eyes.

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Devotionals

November 24, 2011

A Continual Feast

A cheerful heart has a continual feast. –Proverbs 15:15

I love Thanksgiving. I love everything about it, the colors, the fragrant chill in the air, the idea of stopping for a moment to give thanks to the Giver of everything else.

It has been a glorious day, especially welcome after a couple of incredibly hard weeks. Today I immersed myself in the heavenly aromas of the season and let my soul take it in like a starving drifter who has been finally invited to the table.

It’s amazing what can heal a person. After a bruising year in nursing school, I thought I would soon settle back into some semblance of normalcy. Instead, I have been swept into a swirl of heartbreak. A host of hurting family and friends have kept me busy and spent me emotionally these last months.

In the process of fighting for my faith, my friends, and my family, I realized I have been skating near to the edge of the wilderness. Like the children of Israel, I have been doing a lot of grumbling in a dry and thirsty land.

But not today.

Today I remembered my many blessings as I stirred up all our favorite Thanksgiving goodies. Tonight I sat with the people I love and laughed and stuffed myself with the treasure of God’s bounty.

The food was good, too.

It’s amazing how different the world looks through the golden glow of gratitude.

Happy Thanksgiving to you all. I thanks my God every time I remember you!

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Tag: Devotionals