Surprised By The Inside

The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart. 1 Samuel 16:7 (NLT)

I was talking to a friend of mine and he shared this story.  We’ll call him Tom.

Tom said he was on a trip taking care of some business. He was in another country and was down to the very last day of the trip with a list of things that had yet to be done. If he didn’t get everything done, it would be months before he could get back and the entire project he was trying to complete would be stalled.

Tom walked into an office to finish his tasks. He already had trepidation because this office was notorious for their slow moving work ethic.

He stepped up to the desk of the woman who called him over. He explained what he needed and she said “You can’t do that. You need these documents and if you don’t have them, you won’t be able to do what you want.” Tom patiently explained that this was his last day in the city and he needed to get this done trying to gently persuade her to help. She picked up the phone, called someone and explained Tom’s situation to him and he said he’d be right down.

Tom stepped back and waited. He said when he heard the gentleman walk into the room he turned to look at him and thought “Oh no. This is the guy who is going to help me? I am in trouble.” The man standing there was disheveled. His hair was rumpled and he looked like he hadn’t slept in a bed in a while. His clothes were wrinkled and askew. And, he smelled like alcohol. Tom was sure he was at an impasse and would not be able to finish his work.

Tom approached the man and explained what he needed. They started talking and immediately found some mutual connections and a bond formed. The man turned and said follow me. They went to his office. He asked some questions and picked up the phone and started dialing. He called many places (all of the numbers he had memorized) and tracked down the necessary documents sometimes reverting to notes in old log books. At the end of the flurry of activity, everything Tom needed was done except one thing. He mentioned to the man that they were waiting on one more document to be sent but he was told it would take a long time. 

The man reached under his desk and said “This package of documents just arrived this morning.” He leafed through, found the document that was needed and with that, Tom’s task list was complete. 

As he walked out of the office praising God for the help, he thought of what the Bible says about not judging someone based on their outward appearance. Here he was ready to write off this man but as it turns out, the man was the perfect person to help him. He knew everything and everyone even though on the outside he looked like he didn’t know anything. 

You can’t never always sometimes tell who God is using to help you. Don’t look on the outside, look on the inside. You might be pleasantly surprised.

Shields Up!

But you, God, shield me on all sides;
You ground my feet, you lift my head high;
With all my might I shout up to God,
His answers thunder from the holy mountain. Psalm 3:3-4 (MSG)

It’s Monday. Sometimes getting started on a Monday is something I want to avoid. You know, you have to revisit the things that you gladly left behind on Friday. It was such a pleasure to just forget them and think about something else for a change.

I love today’s text because it reminds us of a couple of things.

1. No matter what you are facing, God is surrounding you with himself. He is shielding you and caring for you.

2. He keeps our feet grounded where we need to be (instead of running away from what we don’t want to face.)

3. He lifts our head to stand tall and in that motion, lifts our eyes to stay focused on him.

4. When I feel overwhelmed and slipping, I can shout as loud as I want! I can cry out for help and…

5. He answers me!

We forget that God is with us. That he is our Shield and our Sustainer. We forget that we are loved.

Remembering this today…..Everyone! Shields Up! Let’s go face the day!

A Minute In It - He Watches Over You

A minute in Gods' word will change your life. There are some days when it is good to comfort ourselves in God’s promises. He is faithful.

1 I look up to the mountains—
    does my help come from there?
2 My help comes from the Lord,
    who made heaven and earth!

3 He will not let you stumble;
    the one who watches over you will not slumber.
4 Indeed, he who watches over Israel
    never slumbers or sleeps.

5 The Lord himself watches over you!
    The Lord stands beside you as your protective shade.
6 The sun will not harm you by day,
    nor the moon at night.

7 The Lord keeps you from all harm
    and watches over your life.
8 The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go,
    both now and forever.

But Why?

“Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you.
    I have called you by name; you are mine.
When you go through deep waters,
    I will be with you.
When you go through rivers of difficulty,
    you will not drown.
When you walk through the fire of oppression,
    you will not be burned up;
    the flames will not consume you.
For I am the Lord, your God,
    the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. Isaiah 43:1b-3a (NLT)

Recently, I was listening to a book and there was a quote in it by Francis Chan. The quote went something like this (this is not exactly what was said because I was driving). “I am confident and live in confidence that God loves me. I belong to him. He is faithful to lead and guide me to be the person he wants me to be.”

What I want to add to that sentence is “And he won’t let my life fall apart.” And then I concede that that part might not be true. God tells us in the Bible that we will go through tough times (i.e. deep waters, rivers of difficulty, fires of oppression.) It doesn’t say if. It says when.

Why? Why do we need to go through waves so deep that we have to tread water? Why do we need to feel like we are being overcome by the currents that threaten to carry us away? Why do we need to step into the fire? (Do I sound like a 3 year old asking why to a parent?)

The best answer I can come up with today is that God might want to get to me to a place (in my core self) that I won’t voluntarily go by myself. I am certainly not going to step into a raging whirlpool. And when he takes me there, I will find a faith I did not know I had. I will build a trust in him that I didn’t even think possible.

Suddenly, my faith is not about how something looks or how smoothly it will go but about God and how I feel about him. It becomes about me trusting his plan and not mine.

In all the vagueness of this and the fact that my why questions do not get answered, there is one thing I know. That the Holy One of Israel, my Lord and God, he will be with me. That is enough to get me through.

Designed By......

For every house has a builder, but the one who built everything is God. Hebrews 3:4 (NLT)

Everywhere you look, you see designer labels. What is a designer label? A prestigious marquee that notes who the designer of the item was. For example, BMW, Versace, Armani. And what is the definition of a designer? A designer is the person who plans the form, look or workings of an item before it was built.

I started thinking about all the designer labels we see. Registering what they represent is almost subconscious. For example, when you a BMW emblem, you don’t have to stop and think “Oh, let me see, that stands for BMW.” You just know. Same with a MK on shoes or clothing. We pretty much know that stands for Michael Kor.

We’ve seen it so much, it is immediately recognizable.

So, why are we, as children of God, not immediately recognizable? When someone sees one of us or talks to us, why don’t they walk away saying “Oh, I recognized their Designer. It was God.” More often than not, people are left wondering who made us and why.

We know that God made us in his image (to look just like him) and we know that he added all these wonderful traits to the mix (love, joy, peace, patience kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.) Then, he poured his unconditional love into us so we could be bold and brave. To make it truly amazing, he created each one of us different. Each one of us brings to the table something unique that no one else can offer. A one of a kind designer creation. Finally, to top it off, he marked us priceless.

Makes you wonder……when people encounter us, why don’t they know who our Designer was? Maybe we are wearing the wrong label.

Made Perfectly Wonderful

““I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb. Before you were born I set you apart and appointed you as my prophet to the nations.”” ‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭1:5‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Have you ever stopped and thought about today’s text? I’ve heard it before and when my grandson was born, I thought about it a little.  I liked the fact that before he was born God knew who he was. I liked the fact that God knew what his name would be even before his parents did. And it says that God knew him before he was even formed. That’s way before he was born and even before his parents knew he was coming!

Which means, God knew us before we were formed as well. He knew who we would be. He knew our quirks. He knew that some of us would be creative, and that others would be good with numbers. He knew that some of us would be more logistical. And he knew the number of hairs on our head.

When you stop and think about how God intimately knew you before you were even born, how does it make you feel? Do you feel that he thought “Well, I could have done better.” No way! He loves us and designed us to be just who we are. Each of us has a gift to bring to this world. God has a special place for us and a special role that only we can fill. And it also means that we can do what he has given us to do.

So let me ask you?  What’s keeping you from fulfilling God’s plan for your life? What is it that stops you from giving it your all and living the life God planned for you? God doesn’t make mistakes and he didn’t make one when he created you.  

And oh by the way, even if you have made mistakes along the way, his plan is still perfect. You can always get back on track.

I'm Right Here

Then he asked them, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?” Mark 4:40 (NLT)

Have you ever watched a child encounter something scary? They quickly locate the person nearest to them that they trust and they go to them. That is their safe place.

What do we do when we encounter something scary or overwhelming? We focus on it, imagine all the worst things that can happen and sometimes, we are unable to get ourselves out of that place.

When the disciples were reacting to the storm, they said to Jesus “Don’t you care that we are going to die?” And in Jesus response it was almost like he was saying “I’m right here. I haven’t gone anywhere. I haven’t forgotten about you.”

Why do we forget that Jesus is right here? He hasn’t forgotten us. He’s not too busy to notice what we are going through and he will never, ever abandon us. No matter what storm we are going through.

What if we acted like little children (Matthew 18:3) instead of scared disciples? What if when we encounter something overwhelming, we locate Jesus and go sit next to him and remember that he is in charge of every storm? This is how we define faith. The ability to trust that Jesus has this no matter what tempest is circling our boat.

A Minute In It - You Are My Refuge

A minute in Gods' word will change your life. No matter what is happening in our world and our lives, God is our shelter. Read through the Bible verses below and remember!

1 Those who live in the shelter of the Most High
    will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 This I declare about the Lord:
He alone is my refuge, my place of safety;
    he is my God, and I trust him.
3 For he will rescue you from every trap
    and protect you from deadly disease.
4 He will cover you with his feathers.
    He will shelter you with his wings.
    His faithful promises are your armor and protection.
5 Do not be afraid of the terrors of the night,
    nor the arrow that flies in the day.
6 Do not dread the disease that stalks in darkness,
    nor the disaster that strikes at midday.
7 Though a thousand fall at your side,
    though ten thousand are dying around you,
    these evils will not touch you.
8 Just open your eyes,
    and see how the wicked are punished.

9 If you make the Lord your refuge,
    if you make the Most High your shelter,
10 no evil will conquer you;
    no plague will come near your home.
11 For he will order his angels
    to protect you wherever you go.
12 They will hold you up with their hands
    so you won’t even hurt your foot on a stone.
13 You will trample upon lions and cobras;
    you will crush fierce lions and serpents under your feet!

14 The Lord says, “I will rescue those who love me.
    I will protect those who trust in my name.
15 When they call on me, I will answer;
    I will be with them in trouble.
    I will rescue and honor them.
16 I will reward them with a long life
    and give them my salvation.”