Reflection
Mining for Gold
Then He said to them, “Take heed what you hear. With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you; and to you who hear, more will be given.” ~Mark 4:24
I started a Bible study on the Gospel of Mark tonight. I’m not teaching it; I just want to keep studying God’s Word to see what He would teach me. I want to know Him as well as He knows me. I realize that’s not possible since He is my Creator, but I definitely want to know Him more so that I can better emulate Him.
When you hear a phrase like, “To you who hear, more will be given,” you may panic and think you don’t want to hear any more, but being stretched is not a bad thing. It can be painful at times, but when you look back and see your growth, you will likely find that it was worth it.
There is so much in the Bible that it would take many lifetimes to completely dissect it all, but I encourage you to dig in. Picture yourself as a miner panning for gold and rejoicing with each nugget that you find. That’s what the Bible is like. I found a couple of nuggets this evening, and I hope to have at least a hat full by the time I’m done with this study.
Pleasing God in ALL things
And he walked in all the ways of his father Asa. He did not turn aside from them, doing what was right in the eyes of the Lord. Nevertheless the high places were not taken away, for the people offered sacrifices and burned incense on the high places. Also Jehoshaphat made peace with the king of Israel. ~1 Kings 22:43-44
When I read about Jehoshaphat, I consider him the Godliest king since King David, and yet even he had some shortcomings. He left high places so that people were still able to sacrifice to false gods and, although he was quick to seek God in certain matters, when it came to the kings of Israel, he valued his alliance with them and often followed their bidding.
As I look at my life, it’s easy to think I’m doing well because I don’t do many things that the world does. Sure, there may be areas that I’m lax in, but God will no doubt overlook those because of all the things I do for Him. I know this isn’t true, of course, but it’s easy to live in this mindset, whether consciously or not.
Over and over in Kings and Chronicles, we see either, “He did wickedly in the eyes of the Lord” or “He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord. Nevertheless …” It’s the “nevertheless” that stuck out at me. I don’t want God to be pleased with my life except for one or two areas. I want Him to be completely pleased. I don’t want there to be any shame when I stand before Him. Of course, even my best righteousness is as filthy rags when compared with His holiness, but I want to please Him everything I do.
Oh God! Don’t let me be satisfied if there is anything in my life that displeases you, but root out those things that maybe I don’t even see and throw them far away from me! May I be your faithful servant until the day You take me Home. Amen
It’s Time to Cast Away Idols
Go, tell Jeroboam, “Thus says the LORD God of Israel: ‘Because I exalted you from among the people, and made you ruler over My people Israel, and tore the kingdom away from the house of David, and gave it to you; and yet you have not been as My servant David, who kept My commandments and who followed Me with all his heart … but you have done more evil than all who were before you, for you have gone and made for yourself other gods and molded images to provoke Me to anger, and have cast Me behind your back–therefore behold! I will bring disaster on the house of Jeroboam.” ~1 Kings 14:7-10
In 1 Samuel, we read about the transition from judges to kings. Although it grieved him to do so, Samuel was instructed to heed Israel’s cry and anoint an earthly king to lead them. Unfortunately, Saul too quickly gave in to pride, which caused God to hand his kingdom over to David. God was with David throughout his lengthy reign, but his affair with Bathsheba and the murder of her husband resulted in things not going well for his descendants.
God blessed Solomon’s reign and gave him peace with the surrounding nations which was unprecedented up until then, but his love for foreign women caused him to turn to idols. Because of this, after Solomon’s death, God divided the kingdom and gave the majority to Jeroboam, who had been Solomon’s servant. As we see in the above verses, Jeroboam too turned to idols, and God harshly judged him for not clinging to the God who had given him the prominence he enjoyed. (I’m giving you the quick run-down, assuming you are familiar with these stories, but if you are not, you will find them in 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, and 1 and 2 Chronicles.)
I don’t think it’s a coincidence that, as I’ve been studying these accounts, I just finished reading Idols of the Heart by Elyse Fitzpatrick. When you read the Old Testament, it’s easy to read the stories as just that–stories. But I believe that everything in Scripture is included for a reason. Christians don’t build idols of wood or stone, but we often have idols just the same.
Merriam-Webster defines idol as “an object of extreme devotion.” Some things that come to mind off the bat that could fit this description are sports, your favorite TV show, your family. These things aren’t bad in themselves, but if they are more important to you than your relationship with God, they have become idols.
My heart goes out to parents of young children and those who work jobs that require long hours since it can be hard to figure out where to fit God into your crazy schedule. Although it’s possible to pray on the run, one cannot maintain a close walk with someone that they barely talk to. Busyness can be an idol too, but it’s not necessarily, and I understand that. We all have schedules to keep and deadlines to meet, and obviously, you can’t ignore young children while you take a two-hour prayer time. But I would encourage you to evaluate what you fill your free time with. If your only time to be alone is your 15-minute lunch break, do you spend it reading God’s Word or in some other way? When your baby naps, do you turn your heart to prayer until you follow suit? Every believer is called to seek the Lord. Everything else can wait until you have done that.
Fifty Years and Counting
If you could see where He brought me from to where I am today
Then you would know the reason why I love Him so
I turned 50 last week. It feels surreal. How could I have lived half a century? I know those older than me are thinking, That’s so young! But, to me, it’s a significant milestone.
As I think back over the years, I feel like I have lived quite a few lives.
I have intermittent memories of my childhood, but I remember being happy. I had my parents and my brother. Mom taught me how to read and bake. My brother and I played outside frequently, often with neighbor boys. Although we’ve had our disagreements through the years, we never fought a lot. A friend’s mom called me Sunshine, because she said my smile lit up the room. I think I smiled all the time back then.
When I was 8, my life fell apart as my parents divorced, and my mom married a man who was abusive. They were married for about nine years, during which time I no longer smiled much. I went through a long season of wondering if anyone could really love me. I eventually found peace in knowing that God loved me, but people? That was another story. Those who stuck with me deserve a medal as I was self-focused and not easy to love back then.
We moved away from everything I’d ever known when I was 17, and I began to draw closer to God than ever before. I still dealt with a lot of insecurities, but as time went on, I realized that if I wanted friends, I had to show myself friendly. I also had to start thinking of others instead of being so focused on myself and everything bad that had happened to me.
As I look at my life today, I see a totally different person than the scared, shy, unhappy teenager of yesteryear. I don’t know when the change occurred, but I know that God used each joy and each trial to mold me into the person He created me to be. He has brought so many people into my life that I believe love me. I still wonder why anyone would care, but I am thankful they do.
A number of years ago, I decided that I didn’t want to spend my life in the background, but I wanted to personally be used by God in some way. That continues to be my prayer as I realize that I most likely have more days behind me than I do ahead of me. I pray that I will be faithful in whatever God has for me to do so that I will finish well.
This also seems like a fitting time to thank you again for reading my blog. Although I don’t post as frequently as I’d like to, I trust that you will be encouraged or challenged by what I write. Most importantly, may you draw ever nearer to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Busyness
Do you ever have times when you feel like you are too busy to think? That is my life lately. There are decisions that need to be made and yet little time to figure out the best path to take. This is complicated by the fact that, although I may ask God for direction, I hardly have time to listen to His reply. I often warn my readers to guard against this, but sometimes busyness can’t be helped. Therefore, I must learn to listen while I fulfill my obligations which keep me running.
If you find yourself in a similar predicament, I encourage you to watch for a window in which you can set a slower pace. There are seasons where one must increase the pace, but I don’t feel like this should be normative. If you never have time for God, you are really too busy.
The next few weeks will be hectic for me, but I will watch for minutes here and there to acknowledge my Father. I don’t want to drift apart from Him as people do when they haven’t talked in a while. My relationship with God is the most important one that I have so I praise Him daily and thank Him for His many blessings while trusting that He will give me the guidance I need when I need it. I continue to read His Word even if it is more rushed than usual. If I take that out of my routine, I may never get back to it, and that could harm my relationship with Him as well.
I hate to cut this short, but I see a half-hour window in which I can spend some time with my Savior, so I’m going to close for now. Maybe you can take some time to do so too.
Happy Palm Sunday!
Where does the time go? I always have great plans of writing more as I draw ever closer to the Lord and yet time gets away from me and the next thing I know, it’s been at least six weeks since I’ve posted. I’m very grateful to those who follow my page so that you know when I do write something new.
I wrote a Palm Sunday post for Music Scribe so I won’t post one here, but you can read it at https://blog.musicscribe.com/2023/04/palm-sunday-thoughts-2023.
Last month was busy as I think I was only home seven full days, so this next week will be spent catching up on a lot. Pray for me if you think of it. And don’t forget to focus on our Lord and everything He went through leading up to and including the Cross. It should make you love Him even more.
It’s Not about You
“Do not say in your heart, after the Lord your God has thrust them out before you, ‘It is because of my righteousness that the Lord has brought me in to possess this land,’ whereas it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord is driving them out before you. Not because of your righteousness or the uprightness of your heart are you going in to possess their land, but because of the wickedness of these nations the Lord your God is driving them out from before you, and that he may confirm the word that the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.” ~Deuteronomy 9:4-5
Reading these verses this morning stopped me short. How many times have I assumed that God was pleased with me because good things were happening when, in reality, that may have had nothing to do with it. I have judged others in the same way. If God is using them, they must be finding favor in His eyes. But it may just be that He is showing His mercy to those who are being helped by those people. When you think you are doing well is when you most likely have reason to be concerned.
I believe in honoring and obeying God in order that God can better use me, but instead of judging your spiritual status by whether or not you are being blessed, it’s important to evaluate where you’re at in the light of God’s Word. That is where conviction and assurance come from.
As you continue through your day today, remember that this life is not about you. It’s all about Him! Every time He uses you in some way, take a minute to thank Him and trust that He will continue that work He has begun in you as well as those around you.
Image by Jeff Jacobs from Pixabay
Nothing New
Ecclesiastes 1:9 tells us that “there is nothing new under the sun.” I’m aware of the truth of this statement when I am writing. It seems like everything has already been said, some of which I have said myself. At times, I have to search to see if I have already written on a topic or if I’ve just thought of it for a while. Too much redundancy can make a blog boring, and I’m aware of that, but I also know we sometimes need reminders of basic truths as we become overwhelmed by whatever life throws at us. It’s easy to get our minds off of Christ and onto our problems, and however I can help you to focus on Him, I want to do so.
I started this blog over 13 years ago, and I still thank God for giving me this outlet. My mom was the one who suggested it, and now that she’s gone, I view it as a small way of continuing her legacy as well. Any talent I have for communicating in writing was passed down from her to an extent.
I started this hours ago but had some distractions, and now it is evening. I hope you have a great week. Don’t forget to spend time with the Lord each day. He is the only One who can give strength for whatever life may bring.
Are You “Occupying”?
As I write this, I am in Pennsylvania on our first speaking tour of the year. My brother speaks; I run the book tables. We’ve worked together for a long time, and I praise God that we are still able to do what we do.
I will be fifty this year which is causing a lot of reflection. From here on out, I view each decade as a milestone. Obviously, fifty is big because it’s half a century. As George Younce used to say, I most likely have more years behind me than I have ahead of me. So what will I do with the years that I have left?
I’m thankful that, for the most part, I don’t feel like I have wasted my life. I pray that I don’t start now. I know a lot of people retire to their recliners with remotes in hand, but the people who inspire me are those who are older than me and are continuing to faithfully serve the Lord. I’m not sure Christians ever really retire. It seems like there is always someone who needs encouragement or counsel. So it’s important that those of us who know God stay close to Him, both praying and reading our Bibles, so that we have something to pass on to others.
I may be older than you; I may be younger; but we are all aging. We all have a job to do, and that job is to “occupy” until He comes. So, what does that look like? It will look different for everyone.
How you “occupy” depends on what God has called you to do, and that calling will be different for everyone, but God has called every one of His children to do something for Him. If you are in a job that you hate, pray about that. Are you where God wants you, or are you merely doing something to make money? If you find yourself yelling at your kids, evaluate why. A mom recently told me that she had to stop taking naps because inevitably her children would wake her up, and she would get annoyed. Be in tune to figure out the root of your frustration so that you may stop and not sin.
The year is still young. Tomorrow is another day. If you’ve been living life for yourself, it’s not too late to regroup. That’s the wonderful thing about our Father. We can always stop, repent, and change what we’re doing. He is always there to help get us back on the right track. So, as we go through another year, let’s “occupy” together.
Have You Turned from Wickedness?
Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? says the Lord God: and not that he should return from his ways, and live? When the righteous turn away from his righteousness, and commit iniquity, and does according to all the abominations that the wicked man does, shall he live? All his righteousness that he has done shall not be mentioned: in his trespass that he has trespassed, and in his sin that he has sinned, in them he shall die. ~Ezekiel 18:23-24
Wow. Do you ever feel bad for prophets? God gives them messages to deliver and, although the intent was to give people a chance to turn from their wickedness, more often than not in Scripture, they turned against the prophet–sometimes ignoring him, other times wanting him dead. I suppose things haven’t changed that much. People still do not want to be confronted with sin and yet, if they don’t repent, they too will die in their trespasses, cut off from the life that they could have had in Christ.
It’s easy to talk about “sinners,” but what about those in the Church who are not converted? First Peter 4:17 tells us, “For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God?”
The beginning of the year is a good time to evaluate where you are in your walk with the Lord. I realize that you are most likely back with your nose to the grindstone, but a close relationship with the Lord is vital. It’s easy for the enemy to keep you too busy to have time for God. This can quickly breed indifference which can then lead to a life of sin before you realize how far away from Him you’ve gotten. Don’t let this happen to you.
I’ve been reading Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth’s book on Holiness which has opened my eyes to the fact that holiness is not just doing good things. We need to be full of the Spirit so that His holiness flows through us at which point we can be a light to a dark world that desperately needs Jesus.
