Voices in the Storm

Then he was told, “Go, stand on the mountain at attention before God. God will pass by.” 1 Kings 19:11 (MSG)

Sounds great doesn't it....God passing by. What imagery do you picture when you hear the words "God passes by"? I always pictured calm. Maybe some music is playing and there is peace. Throw in a little sunshine, rolling white clouds, maybe a rainbow and the picture is complete. I said 'used to' because there are many ways God can pass by. As you read further in 1 Kings it says

A hurricane wind ripped through the mountains and shattered the rocks before God, but God wasn’t to be found in the wind; after the wind an earthquake, but God wasn’t in the earthquake; and after the earthquake fire, but God wasn’t in the fire; and after the fire a gentle and quiet whisper. (v 11-12)

God's presence doesn't always mean happy, smiley times. Sometimes, it comes with a storm. Sometimes things are just falling apart. Where it used to be "life is good", now it's downright chaotic. You can't seem to get a grasp on anything long enough to hold on. Here's the good news. Just because our lives seem a little out of control doesn't mean God is not in it.

If you are a follower of Jesus, life is going to be an adventure. Where God is involved there is going to be craziness. We are going to be uncomfortable. We are going to experience lots of insecurity and we are going to say lots of things like "Are you kidding me?" If you didn't have the downs with the ups, your faith would not grow. The only thing you'd learn to trust is yourself. God wants you to trust him.

As you are tossing and turning and churning through a difficult time, remember the last part of verse 12....."and after the fire a gentle quiet whisper." All throughout the storm God was there with Elijah. And he was talking. God is always with us in the tough times. He is whispering our names and offering comfort. Be still long enough to hear it.

I Choose You First

The woman was convinced. She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Genesis 3:6 (NLT)

People ask "Why did God tempt Adam and Eve by putting the tree in the garden?" Let's be clear, God did not tempt Adam and Eve. God put the tree in the garden and told them what he wanted. Satan tempted Eve. And Eve chose what she thought would bring her the most pleasure in that moment.

The same thing happens with us every day. God says "This is the life I want for you. These are the things that will bring you blessings. Choose me and your life with be abundant." And we look at it and say "BUT, if I choose this other thing that isn't in your list of good stuff, I will be ___________." Fill in the blank (Happy. Rich. Successful. Popular). And then we think we can have what we want and God too.

Wrong. You can't. Now let's be clear. God loves you. He wants the very best for you. But what he cares about the most is your salvation. He cares more about that than your happy, successful, profitable state of mind. Eve figured that out. She got her taste of delicious. And her wisdom sure did grow because of that one decision (we all grow when we make bad decisions don't we?). But she also paid for choosing herself first.

Did God still provide? Yes. Did God still show up? Yes. But it wasn't the same. There was a distance between them that didn't exist before. I don't want that. I want to choose what God wants so I can stay close and connected. Will I temporarily be unsatisfied with my status quo? Probably. In the end will it matter? No.

Father God, Please. Help me in my humanness to choose you first above everything. Amen

Making Myself Remember

Ever have those days where things just don't seem right. Nothing is actually going wrong but nothing is actually going right either. Or maybe things are going all wrong and no matter what you do it feels like you are taking two steps backward instead of one step forward, Life is out of sorts and you wonder "What's up?" So you pray and ask God "What's up?" And you get no answer. Nada. So you ask again. Silence.

I can't say why God sometimes speaks and sometimes he doesn't or should I say why sometimes I can't hear him. He may be speaking but my hearing may be impaired. What I have recently discovered though is a way to find peace and comfort when I can't hear him. During these super frustrating times, I reflect on who God is. I step back and remind myself of his character. This helps me remember why I trust him. It reminds me that whether I can hear him or not, he loves me and has not gone AWOL. Here are a few of the texts that I've refreshed my memory with lately. What are yours?

God is love. 1 John 4:8 (NLT)

The LORD appeared to us in the past, saying: "I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness. Jeremiah 31:3 (NIV)

God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” Hebrews 13:5 (NIV)

And finally, most importantly, when Jesus died on the cross he said "It is finished." In other words, "I've got this. It is done. You are safe."

It is always good to remember who God is. What he is will never change. And who he loves won't either.

In the Deep Water

I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go. Genesis 28:15 (NIV)

This weekend I went with my daughter and grandson to his swimming lesson. He's still pretty little. The lessons were given to him for his first birthday. I was sitting on the side-line watching and my daughter was in the pool with him. He loves the water but he's not too sure of the part where they want him to put his head under it. When he surfaces again he looks around and you can tell he's a little afraid. He will look over at me on the side-line and I wave at him and yell "Yay!" Then he looks to his mom and wraps his arms around her neck and she holds him tight.

Reminded me of our walk with Jesus. When we are in what feels like water over our heads and the waves come and our balance is shaky and the water splashes us in the face - sometimes we look to the support system on the side-line for encouragement. Then we realize that the cheering is nice but not quite enough to make us feel safe. We turn to Jesus, grab him around the neck and let him hold us steady.

This week when things get a little dicey, be held. Remember that no matter where you are he is there with you. He's the Rock you can stand on to keep your face above water.

This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. It leads us through the curtain into God's inner sanctuary.  Hebrews 6:19 (NLT)

Facing Giants

That roused the Philistine, and he started toward David. David took off from the front line, running toward the Philistine. David reached into his pocket for a stone, slung it, and hit the Philistine hard in the forehead, embedding the stone deeply. The Philistine crashed, face down in the dirt. 1 Samuel 17:48-49

Run. Run quickly toward him. My breathing was fast as I ran. I was trying to control it by breathing deeply so I could have all the energy I needed when the battle began. Facing this Giant definitely was the craziest thing I've ever done. Ever. Even chasing a bear or a lion didn't seem so insane.

As I put my hand into my sling I felt the cool stone against my sweaty palm. "Lord, you've always been with me. You've provided what I've needed. I need you now." Without even thinking about it, my reflexes took over. All that I had done in the field as a shepherd kicked in. I put the stone in the sling and with an expertise that comes from hours and hours of practice; I swung the sling round and round over my head until I released it saying a prayer as it sailed through the air. "God, hit your mark."

It landed and hit the mark perfectly. The Giant crashed to the ground. As I ran toward him I thanked God for all he had taught me and for his divine hand in my life. Always. Always he's been there to help me face my Giants. "Thank you, God."

Thursday, Mar 23

“Now which of these three would you say was a neighbor to the man who was attacked by bandits?” Jesus asked. The man replied, “The one who showed him mercy.” Then Jesus said, “Yes, now go and do the same.” Luke 10:36-37 (NLT)

Most of us know the story of the Good Samaritan. We've heard it many times. The lawyer whose questions prompted the story started the discussion with one question, "Who is my neighbor?" He was hoping to get off easy; he was hoping that since he was already good to the people he knew Jesus would tell him he had done well. But God's definition of 'neighbor' and those whom you show mercy to requires more of us than we are often willing to give.

Let's make this real. I'm going to throw out some scenarios and I want you to put yourself in the role of the Samaritan. Remember, he helped the Jewish man who had been attacked - even though they were enemies. He inconvenienced himself to provide what was best for his enemy.

Let's start with the stories in the news where a policeman has shot a black man or visa versus, a black man has killed a policeman. You are the family member of the deceased. How will you treat the person who took your loved one's life?

You are living in Paris and were there when ISIS attacked the city and your family member was killed. You come face to face with the person who orchestrated the attack. How do you treat them?

How about some scenarios that are closer to home? Someone has hurt your spouse, your child, your parents. How will you follow up?

Someone you know in business deliberately causes you to lose a large sum of money and you nearly lose everything. You come face-to-face with them at a conference. What do you do?

Some of these are extreme situations and for a lot of us we will never have to face these horrific situations. But, as the world continually becomes more and more distant from God's ideal for us, the reality that we will be faced with our 'enemy' becomes more and more real. Look at your life. Is there someone that needs your forgiveness? Is there someone you should show mercy to? Is there someone who needs your best? This is what God is calling us to do. The idea is just as radical now as it was when Jesus introduced it. We can't do it alone. We need him in our lives to pull it off.

If you love only those who love you, what reward is there for that? Even corrupt tax collectors do that much. If you are kind only to your friends, how are you different from anyone else? Matthew 5:46-47 (NLT)

Wednesday, Mar 22

There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved. Acts 4:12 (NLT)

“I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God. That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.”    ― C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

Tuesday, Mar 21

When the cool evening breezes were blowing, the man and his wife heard the Lord God walking about in the garden. So they hid from the Lord God among the trees. Then the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?” Genesis 3:8-9 (NLT)

Being approached by a snake. Now that's something special. How many of us come face to face with a talking snake? If that isn't an excuse to sin, I don't know what is. In actuality, we've all come face to face with a talking snake. Except it doesn't look like a snake any more. Now, it looks like a temptation that is personal to each and every one of us. To some of us it may be justified in a sale which leads to a shopping spree or a night out with friends that leads to a drinking binge which leads to a one night stand or maybe a way too stressful day which leads to a day of losing our temper with our loves ones. These are all our own personal talking snakes. Satan is an expert at gettingus to hit the pause button on what God wants; jjustify what Satan wants and he disguises it in the form of what we think we need.

And we fall for it. Then, we wish we hadn't. Then, we wish we could take back the one night stand or the day of angry retorts or the "Final Purchase" items sitting unopened in a bag on the closet floor. But we can't. Queue this thing called grace.

As with Adam and Eve in the garden, God comes looking for us. He knows our hiding places. He knows where we go when we feel bad. He's there...gently calling out to us and hoping we'll listen. He's saying "Why are you hiding? I saw what you did. I see you now. Let's talk about it. Let's move on." This is grace. This is who God is. And just as with Adam and Eve, God is calling out to us "Where are you? I am here waiting. You are forgiven." And this....this is where we should be overwhelmed.