Saturday, June 9: 1Corinthians 9- Run well.

Run... run the race wisely and steadfastly and faithfully. Run... Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize (24).

Run in such a way as to get the prize... Those words struck me hard.

Live your life in such a way as to get the prize...

Live your life as best you can for Jesus.

Above all else live faithfully for Jesus.

Plan your life to live faithfully.

Give every effort to live faithfully for God –Father, Jesus, Holy Spirit.

I think of marathoners... there is strategy during the race and training before the race, both of which allow a runner to run in such a way as to get the prize. You have to know when to go hard and go alone and when to keep with a group and let the energy of the group carry you. You have to know the pace you can sustain.

The analogies are straightforward with life and living for Jesus. Many times I need people to help me run my best. There are also times I need to be alone with the Lord and allow Him to speak into me. And there are times when I need to break off from people holding me back and run my race for Jesus.

So may thoughts circulate in my thoughts... thoughts about training, thoughts about nutrition and rest and rhythm.

People don't accidently run a marathon well... and people don't live a life worthy of our calling in Jesus by accident either.

What do I need to do to run my life well for Jesus?  These are the thoughts upon which I am ruminating. 

Lord, to run well, to live well, to finish well... none of these will happen by chance. Guide me, O Holy Spirit, that I might pay attention to Your voice and follow Your lead as an athlete follows her or his trainers and coaches. I pray in Jesus' name. Amen.

 

Friday, June 8: 1Corinthians 8- Now about.

I was thinking about the opening two words of the chapter: Now about… for all their issues and problems the Corinthians were willing to seek their apostle's advice about particular matters. In fact much of the letter is Paul answering a series of 'now abouts…'.

The letter begins with problem issues that Paul has learned about and which he addresses. But then in chapter 7 he turns to address issues about which they have sought his advice. Now for the matters you wrote about… (7:1)

Chapter 8 and following are other 'now about' matters. As I said above, for all their issues and problems the Corinthians were willing to seek their apostle's advice about particular matters. This got me wondering, to whom do I turn when I have a 'now about' issue? How about you?

Recently I went to a conference and one of the leaders, mentioned that he has had a particular Christian brother as a coach/mentor for 35 years! I hear others speak about spiritual directors or accountability brothers/sisters. This has not been my continual practice. I have, as I think about this, had brothers I have met with regularity during seasons of my life. Still I haven't had a consistent voice with whom I can speak about when I have a 'now about' issue. I do use God's Word regularly and certainly the Spirit is the best 'now about' counselor. Still there is something to having the eyes and heart of another brother or sister (depending on your gender) who can look you in the eye when answering.

And if I consider the early chapters of 1Corinthians, they had a trusted brother who could raise issues they might never have considered, left to themselves.

Hmmm, do I have a brother like that?

Lord do You have someone who would be a good 'now about' partner for me during my current phase of life and discipleship???

 

I return to verse 1: Now about food sacrificed to idols: We know that "We all possess knowledge." But knowledge puffs up while love builds up (1). These words advocate a significant difference between knowledge and love. Knowledge not tempered by love, not controlled by love, not supported and walled in by love can be dangerous and destructive.

Love is the base from which a disciple's life must grow.

I don't like to use 'must' phrases if I can help it. Must/have to/should/ leads to laws and rules. However in this case, as I ponder, I feel comfortable in using 'must' because love is the character trait that Jesus wants to define His disciples. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another (John 13:35). Love for a disciple is a must…

I must learn to love all people… only then am I faithfully following Jesus.

Well, this single sentence has taken me on an interesting journey this morning. It has been helpful for me, I hope the same is true for you.

Lord, may these words penetrate my protected life. I pray in Jesus' name. Amen.

 

Thursday, June 7: 1Corinthians 7- Bought at a price.

Marriage may be the most significant human relational institution, so it really is no surprise that God's Word will have things to say about marriage. Ephesians 5 has deep things to say regarding mutual submission within marriage. Today's reading says much about sex in marriage, singleness, as well as other aspects of marriage and divorce.

In the middle of this chapter Paul makes a powerful statement that I chose to ponder… You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of human beings (23).

You were bought at a price… 'purchased and owned' are two words that come to mind. I am owned. I was purchased.  As I thought about that, I mused on the truth that I was purchased by the life of Jesus, the life of God's one and only Son. God gave His life for me. Jesus gave His life for me! This is a staggering thought. I rolled it around in my thoughts.

How highly God thinks of us (of me) that Jesus would die for us (for me). Oh, my…

Building on this amazing truth, Paul reminds us do not become slaves of human beings. Don't trade God's ownership of your life for ownership by some other entity or habit.

Why trade down? Why be owned by anyone else but God who paid such an exurbanite price for your (my) freedom?

I don't normally think of things in these terms, but I am trading down if I allow myself to be subject to anyone else but the Lord. When I do that, I am trading myself from someone who infinitely loves and values me to someone/thing who frankly could care less about me. When I think of it in these terms, all I can say is, "Oh, my… what a fool to trade down."

I return to the wonder of considering how loved and important I am to the Lord… what a wonderful thought to rest in today…

Thank You, Lord God, for Your love, and willingness to buy my freedom at such an exorbitant price. Thank You. I thank You in and through Jesus, my Savior. Amen.

 

Wednesday, June 6: 1Corinthians 6- Temples of the Holy Spirit.

We humans are a messed up lot, even those of us living for Jesus. Apparently we should live 'better' than we often do, at least if the Corinthians serve as a model. They were suing each other and struggling with sexual sins. What a church!  Still Paul opened his letter calling them the church of God in Corinth … those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be his holy people (Corinthians 1:2a).

We probably aren't much different today. Oh, our sins might be different but living below God's ideal is the same.

After dealing with lawsuits, Paul tackles sexual immorality. He seals his argument against sexual immorality with an incredible understanding.

Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies (19-20).

Our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit who is in us! That thought is staggering. The Holy Spirit is the 3^rd person of the Trinity and fully God and He is within us. We have God in us!!!! And just like a temple was to be maintained clean and pure so we are to keep ourselves (our bodies) clean and pure.

The thought gets even richer… we are no longer our own. Why? Because we were bought with a price… the life of Jesus, the 2^nd person of the Trinity, when he died on the cross to be the payment for our (my!!!) sins.

I am not my own… I am God's.

When I was married 38 years ago. I gave up living my life for myself. I now have to factor my wife into all my decisions…her needs, wants and desires…. I went from 'me to we' thinking. I pondered this as an example of what occurred when I pledged my life and confessed Jesus as Lord. No longer do I live for myself… now it is God and me…or as Paul reminds me the Holy Spirit is in me,  so it is the Holy Spirit and me.  And I need to learn to build that into my regular thinking and living.

The outcome Paul says is that we should honor God with our bodies.*

Honoring God with my body goes far beyond what I do sexually. It is a bigger principle that Paul applies to a sexual problem in the church, but it could be applied to eating habits; drinking/drug habits; sleeping habits.

God has given us one body and we should honor Him with it. This speaks to the things I use my body to do. Do I honor God with the work of my body?

The reverberations of this text just keep expanding!!!

God leads me on a review of how I am using and not using my body to honor Him…

Lord, thank You for this marvelous body. May I honor You with how I treat and use it. I offer it to be a tool in Your hands to help advance Your kingdom near and far. Through , I pray. Amen.

 

*Implicitly this text is Trinitarian. Holy Spirit in us; bought with the blood of Jesus; therefore we should honor God!

 

Tuesday, June 5: 1Corinthians 5- Egregious Sin.

Apparently the church of Corinth seemed to pride themselves that they had a man who was known to be committing egregious sexual sin. We cannot be certain whether they merely tolerated this behavior because they didn't want to hurt someone by calling out their behavior or, more plausibly, whether they considered themselves more spiritual because they could 'tolerate' behavior like this. Either way, the Corinthians were unwilling to deal with this flagrant and widely known sin in their church.

Dealing with sin can be such a painful situation in a church.

Most of my life I have served smaller churches. One of the grand blessings of a smaller church is that people really feel like they have a family. On the flip side, everyone knows and cares for each other, and that can create real difficulty when it comes to confronting sin.

So I feel for the Corinthians…

Paul, however, makes a challenging rejoinder; Your boasting is not good. Don't you know that a little yeast leavens the whole batch of dough? (6). Sin –so blatant and so well known –unchecked is a cancer that can affect the entire body over time.

At this point I shifted from the church to me personally. Is there any sin in my life that needs to be checked? It won't be as blatant and perverse as the Corinthian situation, still sin is sin and needs to be dealt with.

So my heart stills and I look inside…

Lord God, point out areas of pervasive sin. Show me. It won't be easy.  Show me how to rely on Your Holy Spirit that I might gain victory over this area in my life. I pray in Jesus' name. Amen.

 

Monday, June 4: 1Corinthians 4- Conscience.

Verse 4 launched my thinking. My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me.

Our conscience can be a powerful tool for good, but it remains an element of a human life, therefore, it is fallible. Very fallible.

Even though Paul's conscience was clear, Paul understood that his conscience was fallible. It could be right or it could be wrong. Jesus, however, is always right and his judgments are always correct. So even though Paul's conscience is clear, he rests his life and his declaration of innocence in the hand of the Lord.

For the most part my conscience is good, steering me toward what is right and away from what is evil. But my conscience is not perfectly good. Like me it is touched my sin. To trust my innocence to my conscience, rather than Christ, would be a colossal mistake.

No, my faith needs to be in Jesus not my conscience!

Keep me tethered to you, Jesus.

Lord, my hope is in Christ alone… not my conscience, not my good deeds, not the hope I am better than most, not in believing that everyone gets eternal life. Lord, my only hope for salvation and eternal life is You, Jesus… My hope is in You and You alone, Jesus. And in this truth I will rest tonight.

My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus Christ and His righteousness… Amen!

 

Saturday, June 2: 1Corinthians 3- It is always about the Lord.

We live in a world that easily falls into personality cults. In politics, in entertainment and, yes, in the church we easily create 'personality cults' around favored and important leaders. Apparently in Christendom this habit dates back to the early church. Paul comes down hard on the Corinthians for making more out of church leaders than is wise.

What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow (5-7).

God definitely uses human earthly leaders. The church needs planters and waterers, but our focus needs to always and only be on God –Father, Jesus, Holy Spirit. God saves us. God grows us. God protects us. God, God, God… it is always and only about the Lord.

My sense in the text is that neither Paul nor Apollos sought any kind of personality cult, but people latched onto them. While this might have been true for Paul and Apollos, unfortunately, not all leaders are this pure. Whether the leader is complicit in encouraging the personality cult or not we, as the church, must guard our hearts against it.

I have leaders and writers who can speak deeply into my soul. I thank God for these people. At the same time I must be careful not to have my following and learning from them become more important than my following and learning from the Lord. These leaders/teachers play a part in my growth but only as far as they point me to and teach me about the Lord. As Paul notes neither… is anything, but only God.

And in any situation where I might be a leader, I must become as humble as Paul, recognizing that I may play a God ordained part in helping people in their journey of faith. Still, I am nothing… God is everything. And I suspect that I will be judged quite harshly by the Lord if I get this wrong!

So this morning the Lord is bidding me to examine and make sure that I am following Him and I have not slipped into the error of following any mere human whom God may have appointed for a particular task in helping the church grow in Him.

Who are you following and are you maintaining a God focused, God honoring perspective? Think about it…

Jesus, be the centre. Be my source, be my light. Jesus

Jesus, be the centre. Be my hope, be my song. Jesus

(Chorus) 

Be the fire in my heart

Be the wind in these sails

Be the reason that I live

Jesus, Jesus

 

Jesus, be my vision. Be my path, be my guide. Jesus

(Chorus) 

 

Be the fire in my heart. Be the wind in these sails. Be the reason that I live. Jesus, Jesus.*

 

*Be the centre, Vineyard Music.

 

Friday, June 1: 1Corinthians 2- The cross.

My heart followed yesterday's lead latching on to the preeminence of Christ Jesus our crucified Lord. For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified (2).

A crucified Christ… the words seem impossible to the human ear, yet they are the very heart of the Gospel message. Jesus came to save sinners by offering His life in exchange for their life on the cross. And while Jesus sits in glory now and will return as the King of kings and Lord of lords, it is Jesus crucified that the church preaches. The cross is at the heart of redemption… the glories that follow redemption are wonderful; they, however, are the result of the action of Jesus' crucifixion.

So, I sit this morning considering the cross yet again. The cross... the key that unlocked the bondage Satan had over humanity.

The cross... the key that unlocked my chains to sin and death and set me free to know and embrace God in reverence and love.

Oh, Thank You Jesus for willingly becoming the crucified Messiah… for setting me and millions free by Your loving sacrifice of Yourself in my (our) stead.

And I'm forever grateful, Lord, to You. And I'm forever grateful for the cross. And I'm forever grateful to You, that You came to seek and save the lost.*

In the name of Jesus, I pray. Amen.

 

*The words to Jaunita Bynum song, "Forever Grateful," just burst from my heart as I prayed.

 

Thursday, May 31: 1Corinthians 1- So true.

Slogging through the middle chapters of Job grew to be a labor of trust that God knows best. Now that Job is over I am a bit sad to see it go. It was a book rich in meditation.

1Corinthians brings me back to direct connection with Christ, which is always refreshing. Verses 17-18 caught my heart: For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel—not with wisdom and eloquence, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

The cross of Christ… the pivotal moment and event in human history. What a rich thought to ponder.

Paul struck a nerve when he wrote, For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. The cross really does divide.

Before my heart was alive to Jesus, I didn't think much, if at all, about the cross. Oh, it hung there every Sunday when I went to Mass, but it didn't capture my attention. I won't go so far as to say I thought it was foolishness but… uncaring inattention isn't much better. And I certainly can understand how non-Christians would believe it is foolishness. I mean really, God dying –how does God die anyway –for sin-filled humans. Who comes up with this stuff? It doesn't make sense.

However, to the mind open to Christ… ah, the cross is beautiful, the source of life, the doorway to redemption, salvation, unending unfathomable love. Yes, the cross is the power of God to save sinners and defeat the devil!

Years ago I made a cross out of the name Jesus. It hangs outside my study on a grand wall. I can see it right now. So rich. So beautiful is Jesus, my Savior and His atoning death on the cross.

I marvel at the gift Jesus gave on the cross. It has been so long since I first bowed my knee to Jesus that I forget what life is like without Him and without the benefits of His cross. The cross is the power of God. 

My heart sings with delight for Jesus, my Savior…

All hail the power of Jesus' name, let angels prostrate fall, bring forth the royal diadem and crown Him Lord of All.

Praise to You. Jesus, King of kings and Lord of lords. I glory in Your cross because through Your cross I am saved, redeemed, restored and invited into God's family. Alleluia. Amen.

 

Wednesday, May 30: Job 42- I am His.

Called into the Lord's courtroom, how does a person respond? Job's final words say it well. Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes (6).

Repent… Job's word is an arrow straight to my heart.

Face to face with the Lord the wise and discerning heart repents. The perfection, power and presence of the Lord overwhelms mere humans. I cannot imagine anything less than Job's reaction. "I repent, Lord, of my actions, words, thoughts, and deeds. I repent, Lord, and I am utterly defenseless before You.

I cannot imagine any reaction short of this one.

As I sit, the need for stillness before the Lord; stillness and repentance overwhelms me.

God Almighty is here. I sit with Him and He with me. Even with my sin God joins me. I feel like Isaiah, "Woe is me, I am a man of unclean lips and live among a people of unclean lips" (Isaiah 6:5). I cry with the Prodigal son, "Father I have sinned against heaven and you. I am no longer worth to be called your son…" (Luke 15:21).

I have this pulse to become small and hang my head in shame for my sin-filled lack.

Still the Lord stays with me. God whispers one word, Jesus, as He pulls me close. God draws me to His side as if I were Jesus. I am clothed in Jesus' righteousness and accepted as a co-heir with Jesus.

The darkness created by my sin, begins to break as the light of God's love shines. I am lifted and drawn into God's embrace. I am His…

I am His, through faith in Jesus.

Alleluia!  Joy floods the moment. Joy fills my heart.

Oh, blessed Lord, words seem inadequate… Thank You. Bless You seems too simplistic. Still they are all my mind and heart can muster.

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me bless His holy name. Amen.

 

Tuesday, May 29: Job 41- Fear, humility, ashamed.

      The inquisition of the Lord continues…

In the middle of God's interrogation comes these words, Who then is able to stand against me? Who has a claim against me that I must pay? Everything under heaven belongs to me (10b-11).

Even without these words spoken this truth is pounded home by the Lord's queries. Stating this clearly only serves to emphasize this truth!

The answer to these rhetorical questions are clear, "NO ONE… especially not you, Job."

What would my response have been to the Lord had I been standing in Job's sandals?

Fear… I mean full on fear of One so powerful looming over me.

Humility… this is no false sense of humanity. Face to face with God Almighty I cannot imagine feeling anything but tiny, insignificant, and humble in His presence.

Ashamed… of my words, my boasts. Even as good as Job was, standing in the presence of perfection would accentuate every flaw in my humanity.

I don't know if I would have any voice to respond. I am not even sure a response is required. I might just fall on my face before the Lord…

Lord, living into the spirit of the moment I just described, I humble myself before You… Mighty, Great, Majestic.

You are Lord God Almighty and I surrender myself to You joyfully and fearfully with reverence and awe… Amen.

 

Monday, May 28: Job 40- How would you respond?.

Job's words, the only words of a mortal in the chapter, grabbed me. Then Job answered the LORD: "I am unworthy—how can I reply to you? I put my hand over my mouth. I spoke once, but I have no answer— twice, but I will say no more" (3-5).

I cannot imagine an answer different from these.

If God questioned me, I cannot fathom being able to say anything more and I wonder if I could even say this much. Even without the questions God has been firing at Job, to be in the presence of the Almighty would I believe be overwhelming.

How could I a mere mortal even stand in God's presence?

How could I a mere mortal even stand in God's presence… without the covering of Jesus Christ?

For the umpteenth time in Job I find myself contemplating perfection… I find myself contemplating the glory and majesty of God.

I am speechless…

I have no words…

Oh, the glory and wonder of God… exalted in majesty… alone to be praised. Thank You, Lord God, for inviting me into Your presence through Jesus Christ, my Lord.

Praise be to You… the one and the only God, Supreme above all. Amen and amen.

 

Saturday, May 26: Job 39- God pours it on.

The Lord pours it on, His inquisition of Job continues. The questions come in rapid-fire sequence. God is relentless.

There is not a mention of Job, yet we know he is on the receiving end of God's questions.

I cannot imagine what it was like to stand there in God's presence as He was questioned. Were Job's knees quaking? Was he trying to hide? Did he stand tall? We don't know because GOD is front and center in this chapter (and the last).

God was at the center of it all in the beginning and now again God is at the center of it all. This seems fitting… God at the center of it all.

It seems fitting that Job's day in court begins not with Job making his case, but with God stating His.

It is actually refreshing to be confronted with the magnitude of God in these pages. Although I am being put in my place, it feels right and good because God is in His place. I surrender to Him. I bow before Him. I worship Him. God is supreme. God knows all.

And to this I say AMEN and Halleluiah!

Oh, Lord, You are mighty and majestic. You are Lord and I trust and believe in You Father, Jesus, Holy Spirit. Amen. Halleluiah!

 

Friday, May 25: Job 38- Put in my place.

Abrupt change… from men questioning Job to God's interrogation. Even with this dramatic change, I feel at peace. [Of course I am not the person being put on the hot seat.]

For me, the fact that the editor of the book announces, Then the LORD spoke to Job out of the storm (1), sets me at ease. Finally I will hear God's voice on this matter.

The Lord, like a prosecuting attorney, launches into a seemingly endless series of questions that neither Job nor any person could answer.

Frankly though at peace I sit stunned. I can only imagine how Job felt. Then I glance back at the opening words, God spoke out of the storm. I do not know what that means literally, however, thoughts of booms and crashes of lightening and the rattling of rain hitting the ceiling if they are inside, or pounding the trees if they are outside, causes additional quaking for me.

I have never discernably heard the voice of God. Oh, I know the nudge of the Lord, an inspired thought I attribute to God's voice but I have never audibly heard God. I have sat in a raging storm, including hurricanes, but never had a sense that God was speaking to me through the storm. Yet, that was clearly Job's experience. The inquisition of God must have been all the more intense given God's platform for speaking… the storm!

I wonder what Job's posture was like. Did he who said he longed for his day in court stand tall and was prepared to speak or did he bow low under the sheer weight of God's presence and voice?

The text at this point is silent on Job, his response or his demeanor. I imagine I would be completely humbled. It is one thing to argue with other me and cry out for your 'day in court.' It is another thing altogether to find yourself in the presence of God with God grilling you.

No one could possibly answer these questions, which seems to be the point of the text. However, we will have to wait until God finishes His statement to know for certain.

Until then, I marvel. God actually gave Job his 'day in court.' That is a rich thought. After all that has gone on and all the speeches, God apparently has been listening and now He answers.

God listens… that thought both encourages me and frightens me.

Encouraged because Job, and by extension we, are that important to God that He cares and He listens…

Frightening because God hears my words which are at times banal and irreverent… that God hears those parts of my speaking…

Even though I am not the one on the 'hot seat', I sit here stilled before the Lord…

Words escape me, Lord. I simply bow my head before You. Through Jesus I pray. Amen.

 

 

Thursday, May 24: Job 37- Filled with wonder for the Lord .

Once again, Elihu draws me into contemplating the greatness of the Lord. 'Do you know how…' Elihu asks in 15 and 16. And he rounds up his words saying, The Almighty is beyond our reach and exalted in power; in his justice and great righteousness, he does not oppress (23).

I look outside and think how does grace grow? Earlier today I was thinking about the northern lights I witnessed in February. How are they formed, I wondered so I looked it up. Science knows part of the answer, but their knowledge is incomplete.

Isn't that true about most things, our information is incomplete.

Not so the Lord… He is perfect in wisdom and understanding because He created all things!!! God not only knows how things work, He created them in the first place.

It seems Elihu's goal is to get Job to suffer humility realizing the greatness of the Lord.

No matter Job's response, which is not included in the story, I was drawn to a pause.

I stopped yet again and marveled at the majesty of the Lord. It was quite easy today, a glorious spring day. Windows open… the fresh air streaks across my cheeks as the crisp air delights each breath. Sun is high in the sky causing colors of budding flowers to pop. I am seated right now by a brook, which runs lazily by, offering a habitat for ducks, geese and a swan. Earlier some type of hawk was perched in the tree either resting or spying fish in the water. Behind all of this beauty and delight is the hand of the Lord. His creation is wonder-full… i.e. when I pause and reflect I am filled with wonder in the Lord God creator.

What a gift… to be filled with wonder for the Lord. Such as been one of the great gifts from my read through Job!

Lord, Increase my wonder… my wonder and awe of YOU. I pray in Jesus name. Amen.

 

 

Wednesday, May 23: Job 36- Lord of all, to thee I raise, this my song of grateful praise..

As I was completing my reading and zeroing in on the words upon which I would meditate, verses 26-30

How great is God—beyond our understanding! The number of his years is past finding out. "He draws up the drops of water, which distill as rain to the streams; the clouds pour down their moisture and abundant showers fall on mankind. Who can understand how he spreads out the clouds, how he thunders from his pavilion? See how he scatters his lightning about him, bathing the depths of the sea.

I began to sing from memory the old hymn, For the Beauty of the Earth.

1 For the beauty of the earth,
for the beauty of the skies,
for the love which from our birth
over and around us lies.

    Refrain:
Lord of all, to thee we raise
this, our hymn of grateful praise.

2 For the wonder of each hour
of the day and of the night,
hill and vale and tree and flower,
sun and moon and stars of light, [Refrain ]

3 For the joy of human love,
brother, sister, parent, child,
friends on earth, and friends above,
for all gentle thoughts and mild, [Refrain] 

4 For yourself, best gift divine,
to the world so freely given,
agent of God's grand design:
peace on earth and joy in heaven. [Refrain]

No matter how much science helps us understand the incredible, interconnected workings of our world, the greatness of our God and creation He has wrought fills me with wonder, joy, gratefulness and amazement. God is beyond understanding. The more we know, the more amazed I grow and the more I realize I do not know! God is beyond all, creating all from nothing.

I gaze out my large windows on a damp spring day. The rains of last night are over, the flowers and earth has been watered yet again. Birds fly, small creatures begin their daily hunt for food, blossoms open, mosses come to life thanks to the moisture of the rain… even muted by the gray tones of the overcast morning the world is beautiful. I marvel at the Lord who made all this and gave me (us) eyes and ears and hearts to soak it in and glory in Him.

Lord of all, to thee I raise, this my song of grateful praise.

Oh, God, thank You for Your majesty, Your creation, Your love and faithfulness. Thank You for the delight of knowing You and seeing You in the world around me. Lord of all, to thee I raise, this my song of grateful praise. Through Jesus Christ I pray. Amen.

 

Tuesday, May 22: Job 35- The blessing of being God's child.

Elihu provides some thoughtful words to mull over.

Look up at the heavens and see; gaze at the clouds so high above you. If you sin, how does that affect him? If your sins are many, what does that do to him? If you are righteous, what do you give to him, or what does he receive from your hand? Your wickedness only affects humans like yourself, and your righteousness only other people (5-8).

I rarely zoom out to God's perspective, not that I can ever see His perspective accurately. Still I rarely attempt to do so, I am comfortable living and viewing life from my vantage point alone. Elihu's thoughts lifted me…

How does my right or wrong living affect the Lord? He remains sovereign. His will will still be done. This is fascinating and humbling to ponder.

I am reminded of the psalmist who sings (Psalm 8:3-6): When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them?

You have made them a little lower than the angels and crowned them with glory and honor. You made them rulers over the works of your hands; you put everything under their feet:

What are we in God's eyes? We are nothing, an insignificant speck on the landscape of eternity, a single grain of sand on a beach. And still, the psalmist pushes us even further in our thinking. Though we are nothing, barely a speck in the universe, God has crowned us with glory and honor.

So even as I consider my humble estate, for some reason, God has crowned me by virtue of my humanity with glory and honor above all other creation.

So I am humbled… my life affects not God, still He blesses me with His gaze and lifts me up with glory and honor as being created in His image.

Oh, the blessing and wonder of being a child of God…

Awed by Your majesty. Humbled by Your greatness. Blessed by Your grace bestowed. I am Yours, Lord God Almighty. I am Yours. I bow to You and I love You. Through Jesus I pray. Amen.

 

Monday, May 21: Job 34- God sustains all.

"More of the same," I think as I read, more of the same. I feel beaten by this labored argument.

In the midst of his comments Elihu makes an astute comment about God:

It is unthinkable that God would do wrong, that the Almighty would pervert justice. Who appointed him over the earth? Who put him in charge of the whole world? If it were his intention and he withdrew his spirit and breath, all humanity would perish together and mankind would return to the dust (12-15).

I allowed these words to lead me into meditations about the Lord…

Actually I shuddered at the thought that if God withdrew his spirit and breath, all humanity would perish together and mankind would return to the dust. News media trumpet climate change or nuclear disaster as potential causes for catastrophe. But those possibilities suggest that we control our own destiny. Where Elihu places God front and center, which I believe is more accurate.

The idea that God, simply by withdrawing His breadth, would cause all humanity to perish staggers me. In fact it takes my breath away.

It never ceases to create awe, when I am hit with the wonder and grandness of our God. 

Oh, Lord God, You are great. You are good. You are above all. And as a son, I get to herald You to the world and praise You with every breath.

Bless the Lord, o my soul and all that is within me bless His holy name. Amen.

 

Saturday, May 19: Job 33- The burden of needing perfection.

As Elihu continues, I struggled to find my devotional nugget. I find I have grown weary of all these words. People pouring it on Job trying to get him to admit he is at fault. He is the reason all this bad has befallen him.

People are so caught up in having Job admit he had done something wrong so that the tragedies of his life can be chalked up to God's punishment of wrongdoing.

Is life a scorecard of behavior? If so there is no room for grace or mercy because they would upset the order of things.

Does God speak to us through trials and tragedy, certainly God can and does do this. God speaks in many ways. But to set up some kind of absolute equation seems to disregard many variables of life. Earthquakes, tsunamis and natural disasters signal God's punishment upon everyone affected? Malaria, small pox, Ebola, cholera also signal God's just punishment on all who contract these diseases? When life is good this is a great theology to hold. When life turns sour this theology is a condemning weight for one's shoulders to bear.

So I weary of all this banter back and forth. I long instead for the Savior who says, Come to me all you who labor and are weary, and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me… For my yoke easy and my burden is light (Matthew 11:28-30). I long for the Savior who says, "I died for you. I forgive you. I love you."

My soul longs to drink from the fountain of grace and mercy. I weary from the burden of the need for perfection.

Oh, Jesus, come, breathe life into my soul. Breathe Your life giving Spirit into me that my heart may be raised to You in joy and adoration. In Your name Jesus, I pray. Amen.

 

Friday, May 18: Job 32- Open to God's wisdom.

A new voice enters the mix. Apparently Elihu has been seated quietly listening to the two sides spar. And Elihu is not impressed with either side; he is especially disappointed in the friends because they couldn't refute Job.

This chapter was Elihu's justification that he, a younger man, could now speak. In the middle of his opening I found some words to chew on.

But it is the spirit in a person, the breath of the Almighty, that gives them understanding. It is not only the old who are wise, not only the aged who understand what is right (8-9).

The truth of these words project off the page. I have beheld this first hand. I have met younger ones who are wise and older ones who are foolish and everything in between. It is particularly delightful when age and wisdom combine… spiritual wisdom, wisdom of years, and years of maturity are a beautiful sight.

But as Elihu says, it is the breath of the Almighty that gives understanding and wisdom. SO what can we do to gain understanding and wisdom born of the breath of the Almighty?

On the one hand it is gift… God gives as He wills. But on the other we can place ourselves in the best place and frame of mind to be open to God's wisdom. It is here that I ponder. What can I do to place myself in the best stead to receive God's wisdom and understanding?

Hmmm… I can seek it, humbly seek it. And what does this mean?

1) Remembering our place; God is God and we are not. We sit at God's feet listening and learning.

2) Paying attention to what God has spoken. Reading and studying God's Word, the Bible, to understand not only its content, but its author, the Lord God Almighty.

3) Conforming ourselves to the will and way God presents in His Word. This is certainly tied in with #1 but in my mind moves beyond #1. This is more than a matter of the heart (humility), it is conformity –recognizing God's way as the correct way and bowing to it.

4) Giving time and attention. Absorbing God's wisdom and understanding takes effort over time. As human beings we are not naturally bent toward God. Instead we are rebellious and sin-filled. It takes time to reshape and re-bend us toward conformity with God. True wisdom is not simply a matter of mastering facts it is integrating it into our personal lives and letting it take root. Only then can we dispense it with a sense of humility and integrity.

Lord, help me to grow to be a man of Your wisdom and understanding. I pray for consistency to do my part as I seek the breath of Your Spirit. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

 

Thursday, May 17: Job 31- Innocence?!?.

Job makes a case for his innocence to friends, but mostly to the Lord. The implicit understanding is that if I am innocent then the trials I am enduring would cease. The trials are seen as punishment for sin.

Surely poor sin-filled decisions sometimes cause us pain, but not always. One cannot set up an equation, good living = blessed living. Not all sin reaps pain in this side of eternity.

Job expected vindication from the Lord for all his clean living.

Oh, God, I know that I cannot possible live up to and satisfy Your law perfectly. Oh, God, every day I realize this and the burden of failure is great. Thank You, Jesus, for love, mercy, forgiveness, care, presence and all manner of other great gifts that You bestow. Thank You and bless You, Lord. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen

 

 

Wednesday, May 16: Job 30- Am I like Job's friends?.

One of the saddest chapters in the book. It's closing words groan in my head. I go about blackened, but not by the sun; I stand up in the assembly and cry for help. I have become a brother of jackals, a companion of owls. My skin grows black and peels; my body burns with fever. My lyre is tuned to mourning, and my pipe to the sound of wailing (28-31).

Weary, lonely words… I stand up in the assembly and cry for help. The inferred answer, none came and probably even worse… mocking, embarrassment, exclusion.

Job is an outcast, tossed to the debris pile by those who once honored him.

And why? Because of assumed sin. People had to impute to his tragedy some personal blame. If they didn't, why would they not simply help as they could?

I am wondering if I do that sometimes? If I refuse help because I have imputed some wrong, some 'they are getting their just desserts' to the pain and tragedy of the person-in-need's life? Do I construct these thoughts to exonerate myself from the need to offer brotherly help? Do I marinate these thoughts so that I feel better about myself?

I don't know… but I have to probe and look and examine. Because that is faithfulness, to be honest with oneself and see faults that need to be surrendered to the Lord.

Is there a seed of Job's friends in me? This really is the question the text presses upon me today. Is there a seed of Job's friends in me?

Oh, Lord, search me and know me, see if there is wickedness in me. Forgive me and restore me to the joy of Your salvation. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

 

Tuesday, May 15: Job 29- Living in the present.

Job's final rebuttal goes on for 3 chapters. I need to note this because today's words are only one-third of his speech, the first act of his 3-Act soliloquy.

Job begins by lamenting the loss of his past. His is a dramatic loss. Once, the venerable sage of the community, people looked up to him and hung on his every word. Now he is discarded to the dung heap. He is forgotten and worse, despised.

Although there is truly no comparison, Job's life is shattered by disaster. As I age I long for some of the years gone by when my body did things it no longer does. A few weeks ago we had a work day at our church, spring cleaning the yard after winter. As we were setting up one fellow who is in his mid 60s commented to me, "You know I just can't work like I used to. I used to be able to keep going and work all day. Now I get tired and some days after a long morning of work I take a nap in the afternoon."

I responded, "Yeah, I can't work as fast and long as I used to either."

Some days gone by can never be retrieved. And while we can miss those years, if we live looking back, we miss the God reflections in our present time.

I get that my thoughts today push beyond the natural boundaries of Job's words. Still I linger. Talking with the Lord about my present life and the ways I can appreciate things rather than long for some other era/period in my own life.

Living in the present and making the most of it… this is what God asks of us.

I find myself thanking the Lord for the opportunity to live… to live for Him.

Oh, Lord, I need your strength and your power to be a difference maker for Jesus. To affect the world for good and for You, help me, Holy Spirit, to follow Your lead. I pray this in Jesus' name. Amen.

 

Monday, May 14: Job 28- A tidal wave of awe.

The NIV labels this chapter "Interlude: Where Wisdom is Found." My initial thoughts were about the origin of the words in this chapter. What is their source? Are they God's insertion into the text? How do they fit with the narrative?

I quickly realized my trying to figure this out, thoughts walled off my soul from hearing the text. I became mind-dominant rather than heart-dominant as I read.

I continued to read, interested in where this interlude was leading. It led straight to the culminating and final verse of the chapter.

And he said to the human race, "The fear of the Lord—that is wisdom, and to shun evil is understanding" (28).

This phrase and similar ones are the bedrock of the Bible's wisdom literature (Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Song of Songs, Ecclesiastes). 'The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom' is an often repeated refrain of wisdom books.

Here it is the crescendo of this interlude in slightly altered wording, The fear of the Lord—that is wisdom, and to shun evil is understanding"

So what, I pondered, is the fear of the Lord? There probably is an element of actual fear I mused. God is absolute and could squash us in a nano-second. As I roll this thought around, while it is true, a deepened sense from my reading of Scripture is that quaking fear is not God's intent. Over and over He restrains for the sake of mercy grace and love.

So, fear is much more than quaking in our boots before God. It is also awe, reverence, and a deep respect. Words fail me. 'Awe' is the audible gasp of one who comes into the presence of perfect beauty, love, power and strength... 

Living in perpetual awe of the One who created all things, yes, I can see how that is wisdom. Oh, that fear of God like that would guide me every moment, waking and sleeping.

My thoughts roll, a natural outcome of fear/awe would be to shun evil.

This leads me to the second half of the line, which in wisdom literature is often a restating of the first in an alternate manner. Thus to shun evil is understanding. Yes, to fear God would cause me to shun evil as I just noted.

I return to thoughts of being in the presence of perfect beauty, love, power and strength...  I feel my heart beating faster. I gather a physical inkling of what it might be like to be in the PRESENCE of God.

I can only enter this place because of Jesus... utter perfection would destroy my sin-filled humanity were it not for Jesus, who beckons me to enter in... to be with my God and enjoy His presence. To enjoy Him...

All I can do, Lord, is praise You and revel in Your gift of presence

I sit still and bask...

Amen.