Category: May 2019

God’s Treadmill: May 22-31, 2019 (Wed-Fri): Read through Ruth, 1 Samuel, Jonah, and Colossians

When I was in seminary and living on campus there, two seminary friends and I got on a jogging kick. Three days each week, we got up early in the morning and jogged around the campus together. I was already near my ideal weight, so for me it was really about getting into shape. Soon, I could run a 5K nonstop and in decent time. Eventually, we lagged and then fell out of the habit. Now, I need to exercise to get into shape and to lose some pounds.

One day, it was raining, so one of my jogging friends and I went to the seminary’s athletic center to run on the treadmill. We decided that we’d try to run our same time as usual but on the treadmill. On the non-rainy days as we jogged on campus, we saw the large variety of flowers planted along the sidewalks, roads, and entryways. We jogged past large oaks and dozens of cars. We waved at other joggers and walkers or stammered out-of-breath hellos or good mornings to passersby. However, in the athletic center on the treadmill, there was none of that. It was pretty much all the same for the duration of the run. Something else about that run: I ran for three miles without going anywhere.

That’s how it is to run from God. It’s like you’re running on a treadmill. You don’t get anywhere. Consider Jonah, the man who eventually was fish food and a bad attitude on steroids. God told him to go to Nineveh and preach to the people there about God’s impending judgment. Instead, he chose to run from God by boarding a ship headed in the opposite direction. Now what would make you run from the Creator of the universe who is all-powerful, all-knowing, and all-present? The seminary word for that is stupid, and each of us has enough stupid ingrained within us to do just that—run from God. So running from God really is like running on a treadmill—you really get nowhere except tired out.

So here are some questions for you:

  • Are you running from God?
  • Why are you running?
  • What do you hope to achieve by running from God?
  • Do you really think that you can escape Him?
  • Would you consider following Him instead of running?

This week you’ll read…

Ruth 1-4: “But Ruth replied: ‘Don’t plead with me to abandon you or to return and not follow you. For wherever you go, I will go, and wherever you live, I will live; your people will be my people, and your God will be my God’” (Ruth 1:16 in The Christian Standard Bible).

1 Samuel 22-31: Praise God for friendships like Jonathan and David. When David was stressed and down, Jonathan showed up. “One day near Horesh, David received the news that Saul was on the way to Ziph to search for him and kill him. Jonathan went to find David and encouraged him to stay strong in his faith in God. ‘Don’t be afraid,’ Jonathan reassured him. ‘My father will never find you! You are going to be the king of Israel, and I will be next to you, as my father, Saul, is well aware.’ So the two of them renewed their solemn pact before the Lord. Then Jonathan returned home, while David stayed at Horesh” (1 Samuel 23 in The New Living Translation).

Psalms 66-75: Of course, David would have been worried with Saul nearby looking to kill him. Many of the Psalms which David wrote seem to fit this scenario, and Saul did chase David all over the country it seems. “Save me, God, for the water has risen to my neck. I have sunk in deep mud, and there is no footing; I have come into deep water, and a flood sweeps over me. I am weary from my crying; my throat is parched. My eyes fail, looking for my God. Those who hate me without cause are more numerous than the hairs of my head; my deceitful enemies, who would destroy me, are powerful.” (Psalm 69 in The Christian Standard Bible).

Jonah 1-4: “I knew that You are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger, abounding in faithful love, and one who relents from sending disaster” (Jonah 4 in The Christian Standard Bible).

Colossians 1-4: “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For everything was created by Him, in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him” (Colossians 1 in The Christian Standard Bible).

MSG are daily readings linked to The Message Bible on BibleGateway.com.

CSB are daily readings linked to The Christian Standard Bible on BibleGateway.com.

NLT are daily readings linked to The New Living Translation on BibleGateway.com.

God’s Rejects: May 15-21, 2019 (Wed-Tues): Read through Judges, 1 Samuel, and 1 Corinthians

Here are some of the scariest words in the Bible: “But he did not know that the Lord had left him” (Judges 16 in The Christian Standard Bible). Samson, the strong man used of God, thought that he’d respond as he’d done before, but his God-given strength was gone. How often have Christians forsaken God in devotion, morality, and principle and then continued on in rebellion or worse, in a Pharisaical Christianity, never realizing that God’s blessing on their lives has departed. They’re operating in their own power for their own kingdom to prop up a façade of Christianity. We can’t deny that God used Samson in the middle of his flaws and even capitalized on those flaws at times (Judges 14:1-4), but that’s no excuse to wallow in sin and corruption.

King Saul was another God-follower who had a hard time choosing to follow God over fears and appearances. He became impatient and took things into his own hands (1 Samuel 13:7-14), and later he decided to amend God’s commands for his personal interests (1 Samuel 15:1-35). I’ve done it, too. I’ve been the Pharisee. I’ve been impatient in the things of God. I’ve rewritten the commands of God to my own liking. What about you?

Regarding God’s rejection, true and sincere repentance is the only solution coupled with calls upon the mercy of God. Of course, God makes the choice whether to use us again or not. He chooses to use whom He wills. It’s a privilege to be His instrument, and we must remain pliable in His hands, walking in His ways for His glory not ours. Although Samson was used of God at the end of his life, he walked a rejected and dejected life for a while. I don’t want to end up in the God’s Rejects Club in the company of King Saul, Judas, Ananias and Saphira, Esau, and Cain. I want to finish well in the company of Abraham, Moses, Paul, John, and Jesus.

This week you’ll read…

Judges 15-21: “He called out to the Lord: ‘Lord God, please remember me. Strengthen me, God, just once more. With one act of vengeance, let me pay back the Philistines for my two eyes.’ Samson took hold of the two middle pillars supporting the temple and leaned against them, one on his right hand and the other on his left. Samson said, ‘Let me die with the Philistines.’ He pushed with all his might, and the temple fell on the leaders and all the people in it. And those he killed at his death were more than those he had killed in his life.” (Judges 16 in The Christian Standard Bible).

1 Samuel 15-21: “But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Don’t judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. 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 in The Christian Standard Bible).

Psalms 61-65: “God, you are my God; I eagerly seek You. I thirst for You; my body faints for You in a land that is dry, desolate, and without water. So I gaze on You in the sanctuary to see Your strength and Your glory. My lips will glorify You because Your faithful love is better than life.” (Psalm 63 in The Christian Standard Bible).

1 Corinthians 15-16: Recently, I was watching an edited version of a newer Sherlock Holmes movie in which Mr. Holmes seems to imply that his investigation gave an unsupernatural explanation to the resurrection of Christ. He says, “In fact, I may well have reconciled thousands of years of theological disparity.” Sadly, some people in the real world, too, lack the faith to believe in the one true God and His miraculous workings in our world. Specifically, they don’t believe that Jesus Christ rose from the dead. Christianity hinges on the resurrection, but our faith in the resurrection doesn’t make the resurrection so. Because it is so and because we believe in Christ and His resurrection, this makes our faith real and true. “And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins.” (1 Corinthians 15 in The Christian Standard Bible).

MSG are daily readings linked to The Message Bible on BibleGateway.com.

CSB are daily readings linked to The Christian Standard Bible on BibleGateway.com.

NLT are daily readings linked to The New Living Translation on BibleGateway.com.

God’s Promises: May 8-14, 2019 (Wed-Tues): Read through Judges, 1 Samuel, and 1 Corinthians

A person’s word used to be his bond. A business transaction could be sealed with a handshake, but in today’s world, 100-page contracts can be insufficient to keep an agreement together. Oftentimes, a man’s word goes as far as the next word out of his mouth. Who can you trust anymore? Of course, there are many people who hold to their word even when it gets painful, and there is always Someone who keeps His word. The Lord is dependable. The Lord keeps His promises.

Think of a time in which you were in the middle of a really difficult circumstance? What helped you make it through? You may come up with a number of answers, and one of those may be hope—hope in the promises of God. Your bank account may prove unreliable. Your relatives may turn out to be less than trustworthy. Your spouse or best friend may end up being less than ideal, but there is a God who is always there. There is a God (and only one) who keeps His promises.

In Judges 13 in the midst of Israel’s running off from God and subsequent suffering under God’s discipline at the hands of the Philistines, the wife of a man named Manoah was visited by the Angel of the Lord. She was barren but was told that she would conceive and bear a son. The Angel of the Lord affirmed this promise to Manoah, and in time the couple was expecting a baby and then had a boy named Samson. Anyone could have given a positive message to the couple about her womb opening and her becoming pregnant, but only God has the ability to give the message and cause it to happen. We can make promises and be thwarted in carrying them out, but I’m not advocating us stopping trusting everyone. However, only God is the truly ultimately trustworthy Person on whom we can rely. Don’t let anything or anyone get in the way of your trust in God and reliance upon His promises.

This week you’ll read…

Judges 8-14: “The angel of God appeared to her and told her, ‘I know that you are barren and childless, but you’re going to become pregnant and bear a son.’ …The woman gave birth to a son. They named him Samson. The boy grew and God blessed him”(Judges 13 in The Message Bible).

1 Samuel 8-14: “When Samuel heard their demand—‘Give us a king to rule us!’—he was crushed. How awful! Samuel prayed to God. God answered Samuel, ‘Go ahead and do what they’re asking. They are not rejecting you. They’ve rejected Me as their King.’” (1 Samuel 8 in The Message Bible).

1 Corinthians 8-14: “Now these three remain: faith, hope, and love ​— ​but the greatest of these is love.” (1 Corinthians 13 in The Christian Standard Bible).

MSG are daily readings linked to The Message Bible on BibleGateway.com.

CSB are daily readings linked to The Christian Standard Bible on BibleGateway.com.

NLT are daily readings linked to The New Living Translation on BibleGateway.com.

God’s Water Cycle: May 1-7, 2019 (Wed-Tues): Read through Judges, 1 Samuel, and 1 Corinthians

Ever gotten stuck in a cycle? When my wife and I were newly married, she worked at a battered women’s shelter for a couple years. One of the things that she learned was that women can get into a cycle of abuse. The abusing husband or boyfriend charms the lady. Tension eventually builds. Then there is an episode of abuse against the woman. The man woos her back in a honeymoon phase of apologies and promises and displays of “love.” Eventually, tension builds again, and there is another act of violence against the woman. Then the abuser draws the woman back again through a honeymoon phase. The woman loves the man and keeps thinking that this time it will be different that he’s changed, and she’s trapped in this cycle of abuse.

Water goes through a cycle on the earth as well. Humor me for a minute as I present a simplistic view of the earthly water cycle. Water falls on the earth as rain. The rain creates run-off as gravity leads water to the lowest point available. The sun heats up the water, causing evaporation. As the water vapor rises in the atmosphere, it cools and attaches to particles in the sky and condenses to form clouds. As the clouds build, they eventually drop their water and rain upon the earth.

In the book of Judges, the Israelites were in a cycle as well, God’s Water Cycle. God would rain down His blessings upon His people. Eventually, they would get their eyes off the Blesser and onto the blessings. They would run off into sin and pursue other gods. God would heat things up for the Israelites by allowing them to become ensnared and enslaved. This would cause them to lift up prayers to heaven in repentance for deliverance. After letting them suffer for a good while, God would come to their rescue, deliver them, and rain His blessings upon them. After which, they would in time run off to pursue other things and gods.

You are on this cycle. Sometimes it’s a simple devotion such as this one which prompts your repentance from a detour. At other times, God may have to use a stronger wake-up call to bring repentance in our lives. I’ve experienced both. Save yourself time and heartache. Listen to the sermon. Heed the soft correction. Listen to that still, small Voice.

So where are you on this cycle?

  • Are you in the middle of a shower of blessings? Keep your eyes on the Blesser.
  • Are you running off? Turn back to the Lord.
  • Are you in the heat of God’s correction or training? Are you in the middle of some catastrophe and discipline of God? Stop resisting God and turn back to Him.
  • Are your prayers rising up to God with a heart of repentance and love?

This week you’ll read…

Judges 1-7: “God’s angel went up from Gilgal to Bokim and said, ‘I brought you out of Egypt; I led you to the land that I promised to your fathers; and I said, I’ll never break my covenant with you—never! And you’re never to make a covenant with the people who live in this land. Tear down their altars! But you haven’t obeyed Me! What’s this that you’re doing? So now I’m telling you that I won’t drive them out before you. They’ll trip you up and their gods will become a trap.” When God’s angel had spoken these words to all the People of Israel, they cried out—oh! how they wept! They named the place Bokim (Weepers). And there they sacrificed to God” (Judges 2 in The Message Bible).

1 Samuel 1-7: Hannah was despondent. She was barren and her husband’s other wife ridiculed her because Hannah had no children, so she went to the tabernacle. “Deeply hurt, Hannah prayed to the Lord and wept with many tears. Making a vow, she pleaded, ‘Lord of Armies, if you will take notice of your servant’s affliction, remember and not forget me, and give your servant a son, I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and his hair will never be cut’” (1 Samuel 1 in The Christian Standard Bible).

1 Corinthians 1-7: “Dear brothers and sisters, when I was with you I couldn’t talk to you as I would to spiritual people. I had to talk as though you belonged to this world or as though you were infants in the Christian life. I had to feed you with milk, not with solid food, because you weren’t ready for anything stronger. And you still aren’t ready, for you are still controlled by your sinful nature. You are jealous of one another and quarrel with each other. Doesn’t that prove you are controlled by your sinful nature? Aren’t you living like people of the world?” (1 Corinthians 3 in The New Living Translation)

MSG are daily readings linked to The Message Bible on BibleGateway.com.

CSB are daily readings linked to The Christian Standard Bible on BibleGateway.com.

NLT are daily readings linked to The New Living Translation on BibleGateway.com.