A Quiet and Holy People

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God

Back in the third century, Cyprian, the Bishop of Carthage, wrote to his friend Donatus: "It is a bad world, Donatus, an incredibly bad world. But I have discovered, in the midst of it, a quiet and holy people who have learned a great secret. They have found a joy, which is a thousand times better than any of the pleasures of our sinful life. They are despised and persecuted, but they care not. They have overcome the world. These people, Donatus, are Christians, and I am one of them."

I just love the phrase, a quiet and holy people... There is so much yelling, and name calling, and sniping in this world. We are bombarded with these and many more things daily. Yet the true Christ follower can be quiet and holy. The word that comes to my mind is peaceful.  

There is a kind of peace that Christ followers can experience that blows the world away. Maybe because it is not of, or from this world. It is a Christ given peace to those who follow Him. Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful. [John 14:27]

That’s the kind of peace that people notice, especially when we display it through our troubled times — when we're despised, when we're persecuted, when we’re marginalized, when we’re in the middle of chaos. 

To quote an old movie title, we live in a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World — an incredibly mad world.  But we have victory in our Lord. Let's begin to trust God for that victory in a way we haven't before. Let His unworldly-like peace rule your heart and mind. 

And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful. Colossians 3:15

Orders Remain Unchanged

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God

One of the most fascinating sites to visit in Washington D.C. is the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington National Cemetery. The Tomb is guarded 24-hours-a-day and 365-days-a-year by a platoon of 30 honor guards of the 3rd United States Infantry (The Old Guard), through rain, snow and even hurricanes! 

A single sentinel takes his post, walking exactly 21 steps then pausing for 21 seconds before turning around and continuing his duty. The number 21 is in reference to the 21 gun salute which is the military's highest honor given to a soldier. When the changing of the guard takes place, the orders are passed from one soldier to the next — "Orders Remain Unchanged."

That got me to thinking. The world is rapidly changing before our eyes! We could very well be living in the days described by Paul as the “perilous times” — the “end times.” And while it has been about 2,000 years since a our Lord’s ascension into heaven, one thing is the same — our "Orders Remain Unchanged."

Be on guard, dear Christ follower. Be watchful and alert for every opportunity to carry out your orders. Remember, they have not changed: Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen. Matthew 28:19-20 

Turn on the Lights

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God

During the Feast of Tabernacles, the temple priests would set up four great lampstands in the Temple courtyard. It was quite the project requiring the use of tall ladders. The lighting of the candelabra began the celebration of the "Great Hosannah." The celebration went on all evening, lasting into the morning hours. It was a time of great rejoicing with music and dancing, while the Temple shown in brilliant light. Jerusalem was a breathtaking, illuminated city on a hill. One historian said that the Temple was gloriously visible as far away as Bethlehem — about 6 miles to the south.

As the week progressed, the people began rehearsing the prayer that they would recite on the last day of the Feast. It went something like this: "Be praised, O Lord our God, King of the Universe, who makes light and causes darkness, who makes peace and creates all: the light of the world as the treasure of life…"

It so happens that Jesus attended a Feast of Tabernacles. And it was in that context  that Jesus announced, "I am the Light of the world!"

What a wonderful thought; our Jesus, the Redeemer, is the light of the world! It follows that we need not walk in darkness because we have the light of life [John 1:4]. Perhaps some of you have been walking in darkness — maybe for a while now. Today is the day to turn the light on. Or maybe I should say it this way: give your life to the Lord again and let His light shine in you. 

Just like the Temple Mount in the heart of Jerusalem, your life can once again shine like a city that is beautifully illuminated for the world to see. 

Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, "I am the Light of the world: he that follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but will have the Light of life." John 8:12 

While He Was Still A Long Way Off

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God

I reread the parable of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15, which prompted some thoughts about the reaction of the father to his son.

What struck me most in this reading was the short phrase, “And while he was still a long way off...” The father did not wait for the son to come to him. Instead, he ran to greet his wayward son. 

My first observation is, we, the Church and individual Christ followers, cannot sit back and wait for people to come to hear the message or be welcomed. We must be proactive and run to meet those who most desperately need to be restored. When we do this, we are emulating the father that Jesus described to us in His parable.

The second observation is that when the father met up with his son, he didn’t express condemnation or criticism, although the lad certainly deserved it! He was just happy to have the relationship restored. As a matter of biblical fact, the only emotion expressed by the father was rejoicing. His lost son had returned! Why is it that so many who are outside of the church feel condemned by the church? If anyone should be the most welcoming and joyful for restored fellowship, it is Christ followers – The Church. Were we to be like the father in this parable, we would be a reflection of our Christ, who left His glorious home in heaven to come and rescue us! 

And he arose and came to his father. And while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. Luke 15:20

Get Out of the Way

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God

Do you remember the bracelets and necklaces that Christians wore years ago that had the letters WWJD? It was an acronym for “What Would Jesus Do?” It was a great idea, but as I have gotten older, I think I have a problem with it — not with the idea, but how can we, mere humans, really know what Jesus would do? He had a way of doing the unexpected, like the time a lame man was brought to Him and Jesus forgave his sins [Mark 2:1-12]. Or like the time when, in front of an angry crowd, He defended the woman caught in adultery [John 8:1-11]. Or like the time when a demoniac was delivered and was told that he had to go home and not follow Jesus [Mark 5:18-19]. 

The point of all this is if I do as Jesus did, then I must see things as Jesus sees them and love as Jesus loves. It’s at that point that I fall short. If I may be honest with you, I put everything through the grid of what would Rick do or what is best for Rick?

So, is it really possible to accomplish WWJD? We would come a lot closer to it if we followed the exhortation of Paul to, “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” [Philippians 2:3–8]

To do what Jesus would do is a worthy goal and the first thing we have to do to accomplish it is to get out of the way! That’s right, walk in humility and get out of the way. The good news is that, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” [Philippians 4:13] I just need to get out the way of the One who can actually do it!

Can I Trust God in Hard Times?

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God

I know that I am not alone in whining to God when things don’t go my way—at least I hope I’m not the only one! As a matter of fact, there are times when I get rather petulant when things don’t improve as quickly as I think they should. Yes, I know we live in a fallen world, and that disappointment is inevitable. But my pettish response is neither appropriate nor helpful. 

That is where the truth of Scripture comes to play. It challenges me to face my petulance and cry out to God for change.

Yesterday, my Scripture reading was the story of Joseph in Genesis. What a story! Mistreated by family members. Sold into slavery. Imprisoned for a crime he didn’t commit. What more could go wrong?

Well, a couple of his inmates were benefitted when Joseph correctly interpreted their dreams. One of them was restored to a position in the King’s palace and promised to tell the king about Joseph. However, he got caught up in his own good fortune and forgot all about Joseph for two years [Genesis 41:1]. “Two whole years,” is how the ESV states it.  

We’re not told in the text, but I wonder if Joseph threw a pity-party during that time. Surely he had questions for God while he languished in prison. Let’s face it, he had gone from a favored son to a prisoner through no fault of his own. 

What we forget is that we have the benefit of reading the story in one setting and find out that Joseph would, indeed, be released and rise to a high position beside the King. But Joseph didn’t have the benefit of that knowledge. He had to live out the entire two years one second at a time — all 32 million of them!

No Christ follower knows how the story of their life will play out. That’s why we need to be like Joseph and trust in God’s providential care. I know this in my mind, it’s my heart that falters when the going gets tough. 

Again, it’s the Scripture that feeds my soul. It comes through the pen of King David, “I have been young, and now am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken or his children begging for bread.” [Psalm 37:25, ESV]

Forgiveness

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God

I read an interesting article by a missionary about the difficulty of communicating the Gospel to people groups, especially when they don’t have words equivalent to our English words. He went on to tell about the first missionaries to share the Gospel with Eskimos. They couldn’t find a word in the Eskimo language for forgiveness. So they made up a word by putting together a number of Eskimo words. It was the word, issumagijoujunnainermik. 

Broken apart it looks like this: Issu-magi-jou-jun-nai-ner-mik. That was the new word for forgivness and it means, not-being-able-to-think-about-it-anymore. 

What a wonderful word! Christ followers often remember or rehearse their hurts over and over again, rather than relinquishing them to the care of God. And while we know that we can’t forget them, we can release its hold on us by putting them aside. Isn’t that what Paul told the Philippian believers? He said, “...but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead...” [Philippians 3:13]

It’s better that we not replay the hurts that we may have acquired. Rather, replay God’s mercy, His grace, His love for us - and those who have hurt us - when He freely gave His life on behalf of us all. That will help us release the power of those hurts, and enable us to move forward again. 

But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses. Mark 11:26