"You Have My Heart in Your Hands"

Walk with me for a short while as I recount my recent days in the face of trial and hardship in the hospital. I’m about to let you into a very private and completely raw moment in my ongoing struggle with Congestive Heart Failure. I might be taking a risk here, but I think it will be well worth your while me to do so.

Keep in mind as you read that you have my heart in your hands.

It was a Thursday morning, the day before we were flying to Denver for our daughter’s wedding. We had waited years for this wondrous moment to come, and had spent the past 12 months building toward the day. Our plans were made, our tickets booked, our hotel reserved, our car rented – all things read and in the “go” position.

Bu then my health took a turn for the worse the day before we were to leave.

I went to the doctor to see if he could do anything to help me discharge the excessive fluids in my body, so that I could make the trip without any complications.

He examined me and said, "You're not flying anywhere; we need to get you in the hospital today to start a treatment to turn this around." I was crushed in my spirit, and so overcome with emotion that I covered my face with my hands as I began to cry a deep, sorrowful release of out of my broken heart. I was not going to be able to go to my daughter's wedding.

I encouraged Belinda to go ahead and go, because there would be no point in her staying here, seeing I was going to be in the hospital under 24 hr nurse care. She drove me to the hospital and walked me through the admittance process. Then she left and went to Denver.

I lay in my bed overwhelmed with great disappointment, and imagined how each of our kids would feel, but most especially my daughter. My thoughts turned toward the Lord and I felt something I've not felt in a very long time. In fact, I never felt it as strongly as I did right then.

I was angry with Him. I was offended by God. I felt like I had entrusted Him with the most precious thing I had, and trusted that He would work things out for me to be with my daughter on her wedding day.

But no, He wasn't there for me. It seemed to me as though He had slept through the whole thing like He didn't even care.

Shall I continue?

This ate at me on the inside because I knew deep down this was a defining moment for me. I felt as though I would never be able to trust the Lord ever again with anything that truly mattered. Oh, sure, headaches and sprained ankles are within reach of His power -- but you've got to take aspirin, and stay off your ankle for two weeks. So take Him the little things, for He can handle that – if He wants to, when He gets around to it.

Shall I continue?

I got honest with Him, seeing He already knows everything I'm thinking. "Lord, I got to tell You; I think this is going to be something between us.....and I have no way around it. I cannot see or understand why You would let this happen. And, frankly, I don't even know how to move forward with You seeing that this makes me doubt You so strongly. How can I truly depend on You to care for me when You made no effort whatsoever to help me make this one trip....this once in a lifetime moment -- my daughter's wedding. I just don’t get it.”

So there you have it. That's where I was emotionally and spiritually by Friday evening. Down and out, I was feeling hopeless and despairing of ever seeing anything good again; feeling that my relationship with Jesus was effectively over. It's not a good place to be.

The next morning, Saturday, the day of the wedding, I was still brooding in my funk. Sometime in the middle of the afternoon as I let my thoughts drift to what might be going on at the wedding; the Lord suddenly spoke to me.

He was not angry or put out by my honesty, and spoke as though there was nothing between us.

"James, what if you were in Denver right now?" He asked. "And what if medical complications had escalated because of the flight and the altitude, and they were now rushing you to the hospital in Denver. Of course, Belinda would be in the ambulance with you. And as the ambulance pulls away and its sirens fade in the distance -- what do you imagine that would do to your daughter's wedding?

"It would have totally crashed it," I said.

"That's why I kept you here," He said. This isn't about you, it's about your daughter? I wanted to make sure she had the best day possible."

Then He said, “And your welcome.”

I started laughing and crying out loud, "O Lord I am such an idiot!" I said. "Please forgive me!"

And, as It turns out, one of the guys at the wedding had set up a live stream video and I was able to watch the wedding as if I were there! The Lord is good!

Did my daughter miss me? Sure. But the Lord was there for her, and for my other kids as well. Did the Lord care about it? Far more than I could have ever imagined!

"Lord, you're not just good," I said. "You're 'Tony the Tiger' GREAT!!"

After all this I took a walk around the hallway. Turning the corner I came upon a sigh somebody had put on the wall. It said "You Have My Heart." That stopped me in my tracks. I felt the Lord was saying, "I have your heart in my hands.....and you have Mine."

A peace came over me and I knew everything would be alright.

·         Nahum 1:7 -- The LORD is good, A stronghold in the day of trouble; And He knows those who trust in Him.

·         Psalm 100:5 -- For the LORD is good; His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endures to all generations.

·         Psalm 34:8 -- Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who trusts in Him!

·         Psalm 145:9 -- The LORD is good to all, and His tender mercies are over all His works.

By the kindness and goodness of the Lord, I was saved from a pit of despair, from a root of bitterness, and from the snare of unbelief. I write this in hope that the same can happen for you....whatever your circumstances may be.

For the Lord is good.

The Storehouses Reserved for Times of Trouble

"Have you entered the storehouses . . . which I reserve for times of trouble?" (Job 38:22–23, NIV)

What? Nobody ever told me that these storehouses even existed!

I've heard of showers of blessings, but I've never heard about these storehouses reserved for times of trouble. And notice, it's not just one storehouse; there are many. This means that any and every trial of suffering we will face is already answered abundantly by the Lord's provisions -- even now set out for pick up at the will-call desk, with our name written on the ticket. The name of Jesus is there also; right where it says, "Paid in Full!"

Could it be that "trouble" is God's hand-delivered, personal invitation, granting us full access to these storehouses? What a thought! Have you received your personal invitation yet?

Perhaps nobody understood this any better than the Apostle Paul. Writing from a darkened Roman prison cell on Death Row, Paul encouraged the Philippians with these enduring words -- which have brought comfort to millions of saints through the ages -- "My God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus" (Phil.4:19).

This was not a theory Paul mused over; no! It was an unshakable conviction backed up with much evidence. "My grace is sufficient;" Jesus said to him, "for My strength is made perfect in weakness." Because of this singular, life-altering truth, Paul could say, “So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. That's why I take pleasure in my weaknesses and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” (2Co 12:9,10). 

These storehouses which God has reserved for times of trouble are filled with His grace. "God is able to make all grace abound to you so that you -- in all things, at all times, having all that you need -- may abound unto every good work." This is what it means to have your needs met in an over-flowing of abundance!

This is precisely why we are invited into the Throne Room of God Almighty. "Let us come boldly unto the Throne of Grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in our time of need" (Hebrews 4:19).

We see our troubles, trials and tribulations as great obstacles; things that thwart our plans and disrupt our lives. We cry, because we are in pain. We pray, because we are in great need. We despair, because we are undergoing great suffering. We panic, because there seems to be no answer from heaven.

And then the Lord's kind voice cuts through the thick bog of our polluted thoughts and He asks, "Have you entered the storehouses . . . which I reserve for times of trouble?"

Instead of seeing your trial as an obstacle, see it instead as an opportunity. The Bible says that God will "transform the Valley of Trouble into a gateway of hope" (Hosea 2:15, NLT)

"If we would look at our past, most of us would realize that the times we endured the greatest stress and felt that every path was blocked were the very times our heavenly Father chose to do the kindest things for us and bestow His richest blessings." (A.B.Simpson)

So, friend; check your mail. You just might find a personal invitation from Jesus HImself to visit with full access HIs Storehouses of Treasure, which He has reserved for times of trouble -- including yours!

Till the Storm Passes By

"His way is in the whirlwind and the storm." (Nahum 1:3)

Does God care? If so, does He work all things together for my good? And if so, then exactly when and precisely how does He do this? What might I expect?

Will the gentle breeze of the Spirit refresh my wearied soul? Maybe. Maybe not. Will a fresh rain fall from heaven to replenish my barren heart? Maybe. Maybe not. Will a balmy sun shine softly on my chilled frame, renewing my vitality and strength? Maybe. Maybe not.

Often we expect the gentle breeze from the south, and are greeted instead with a howling storm from the north. We rebuke the winds, but they only increase. The wind blows, the rain falls, the waters rise -- and beat against our house.

Yet, when the storm passes -- and it surely will -- we find our house still standing even when others have fallen to pieces. It was right that we took the time to build upon the rock.

Have you ever wondered why the Lord works in such unexpected and disrupting ways? The prophet Nahum tells us, "His way is in the whirlwind and the storm." This helps us understand that when we ask the Lord to make us like Him -- sometimes it seems as though "all hell has broken loose" upon us.

Is this making any sense to anybody, or am I just going crazy?

Let's talk a minute about Niniveh, seat of the dreaded Assyrian Empire. Imagine how happy the people of Judah were when they heard: “Nineveh has fallen! The Assyrian empire is no more!” (cf. Nah 1:15)

Assyria was a ruthless enemy that practiced brutality on men, women, and children. Their armies destroyed and looted; they buried their enemies alive and even skinned them alive; they impaled people on sharp poles and left them to burn in the sun.

They were the ISIS of their day -- the scourge of the nations. Hated and feared by all. Many sought to win their favor and lenience by submitting themselves to their rule.

This is a graphic picture of how people become slaves to sin; how their lives take on the characteristics of those who have conquered them. But then Jesus enters into the story. And He unleashes the full measure of his just wrath against this great oppressive wickedness.

When Assyria was at the very peak of her power, and nobody ever imagined that mighty Nineveh would fall, God brought the empire down with one mighty Storm!

Perhaps the storm you are facing is not against you at all. It is the Lord's way of overthrowing the dark powers that have laid unjust claim to your life!

Isaiah the Prophet said, “O Lord, our God, other masters besides You have ruled over us, but we will acknowledge and mention Your name only. They [the former tyrant masters] are dead, they shall not live and reappear; they are powerless ghosts, they shall not rise and come back. Therefore You have visited and made an end of them and caused every memory of them [every trace of their supremacy] to perish. (Isa 26:13-14, The Amplified Bible)

Nahum gives three great promises to reassure Israel during the intensity f the storm. First, he says the Lord is good. “The LORD is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them that trust in him’ (Na.1:7). When you are in the storm hold on to God’s goodness; remind yourself of His unfailing love, His steadfast faithfulness, His unswerving Mercy, and His never-ending abundant Grace. This will carry you through any storm!

Second, Nahum reassures the people that the Lord will not permit the affliction to repeat itself. “What do ye imagine against the LORD?” he asks. “He will make an utter end: affliction shall not rise up the second time.” (Na.1:9). What a great promise for those who are under the weight of a long, ongoing season of pain and suffering.  How kind of the Lord to reassure them that once He has done His work – affliction will not rise up the second time!

Third, Nahum once again reiterates the completeness of the Lord’s work in bringing an end to the oppressive work of the enemy; especially when it is done secretly, undercover, clandestine and undetected. The Lord sees; and it will turn on the light and bring and full end to the works of darkness! “This is what the LORD says to his people Israel: "Even though the Assyrians are strong and numerous, they will be destroyed and disappear. My people, I made you suffer, but I will not do it again.” (Na 1:12, the Good News Bible).

So, my dear friends, when the storm hits and all hell breaks loose – keep these three truths fixed firmly in your mind: God is good, the affliction will pass and not return, and the Lord will put an end to the oppressor and deliver His people from their suffering.

In a single sentence the mystery of the Storm is understood when viewed from the unique perspective that the Lord is overthrowing your enemy, and He is sitting up His kingdom in your heart!

Now, that’s Good News!

Till the Storm Passes By

Mosie Lister, beloved Gospel songwriter and member of the GMA Hall of Fame, wrote these words while in the midst of a great personal storm. Maybe you will find peace for your bombarded soul as you read these enduring lyrics….

“In the dark of the midnight, Have I oft hid my face; While the storm howls above me, And there's no hiding place; 'Mid the crash of the thunder, Precious Lord, hear my cry; "Keep me safe 'til the storm passes by."

'Til the storm passes over, 'Til the thunder sounds no more;

 'Til the clouds roll forever from the sky,

Hold me fast, let me stand, In the hollow of Thy hand;

 Keep me safe 'til the storm passes by.

Many times Satan whispers, "There is no need to try; For there's no end of sorrow,There's no hope by and by"; But I know Thou art with me, And tomorrow I'll rise; Where the storms never darken the skies.

When the long night has ended, And the storms come no more,

 Let me stand in Thy presence. On that bright, peaceful shore.

In that land where the tempest Never comes, Lord may I

Dwell with Thee when the storm passes by.

'Til the storm passes over, 'Til the thunder sounds no more;

 'Til the clouds roll forever from the sky,

Hold me fast, let me stand, In the hollow of Thy hand;

 Keep me safe 'til the storm passes by.

Sometimes You Just Need to Hurl

"Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you." (1 Peter 5:7).

The Bible says that we are to "humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God." Permit me to show you the secret of exactly how to do it. Today's verse is filled with decisive action. We are specifically told to do something....something very important. "Cast all your cares upon Him."

The word he uses literally means "to be continually casting." This is not a one time thing; no, we are to make it the habit of our daily lives. And the root meaning is beautifully excessive; it goes beyond the thought of simply becoming an imposition upon another -- it actually has the idea of being a "super-imposition" -- a total freeloader!

Have you ever said to someone, "I don't mean to impose upon you, but could you give me some help?" It's a polite way of humbling yourself in a time of need. And that's all well and good, for sometimes we do need to ask others for assistance, without becoming an imposition upon them.

But the Apostle goes well beyond this social protocol. He instructs us to not merely make ourselves an imposition upon God -- but to go so far as to become a super-imposition upon Him!

The word literally means "to throw upon another." In this case, the other is God Himself. Peter is saying that we must throw our cares upon God. Indeed, HURL them, so as to get them as far away from ourselves as possible!

This is the secret of humbling ourselves under the mighty hand of God.

The proud hold tightly to the cares of this world, deeming themselves sufficient to handle things on their own. But, we humble ourselves by "casting our cares upon the Lord" -- by hurling the weight of the world onto His strong shoulders, and finding our place of rest in His loving care.

On Assignment by Jesus

"I, Peter, am an apostle on assignment by Jesus, the Messiah" (1 Peter 1:1 The Message).
Delightful thing this is, to be on assignment by Jesus. The word means to appoint a particular person to a specific use.

Os Guinness wrote, "Our passion is to know that we are fulfilling the purpose for which we are on earth. All other standards of success - wealth, power, position, knowledge, friendships - grow tiny and hollow if we do not satisfy this deeper longing."

Deep in every heart is the God-planted desire to live a life that makes a difference. Many spend their lives looking for that one things to which they can give their all. Somehow we human beings are never happier than when we are expressing the deepest gifts that are truly us. The truest way to fully express those gifts is by being on assignment by Jesus.


How wonderful it is to be able to say, "I am on assignment by Jesus." Especially if you, like Peter, have said or done things which otherwise would mark you as one who does not deserve such an opportunity.


And being those who are “on assignment” -- all our talents, gifts, abilities, experiences, discoveries, longings, dreams, thoughts, and labors are re-focused on doing His bidding at this time, in this place, for this reason.

But there is abundant mercy in the Lord! And in the same way Peter experienced it and was born again to a living hope – we too can do the same. We can experience our own resurrection from the dead, and walk in newness of life with a fresh start in the Kingdom.

I read somewhere that a man can withstand anything but an unending stretch of monotonous days. We simply must have a purpose for which we live! And the nobler the purpose is, the greater our lives become.

Noting is more noble than being on assignment by Jesus! Hand-picked by Him, personally trained by Him, empowered by Him, and completely suited by Him to do the job well.

Sign me up today!! Lord, may Your grace so work in my life as to bring me to the place of my assignment! 

A Fresh Start

“I have prayed for you, that your faith not fail. And after you have come through your time of testing, turn to your companions and give them a fresh start” (Luke 22:32 The Message).

There may be no other disciple in the New Testament with which so many believers today can personally identify than Simon Peter. He was passionate and headstrong; quick to repent, and even sometimes quicker to blow it once more. His life unfolds before us in great drama, speaking time and and time again to the issues that lay within our own hearts.

Jesus told Peter, “Satan has desired you, that he might sift you as wheat.” That’s probably not anything you would want to hear from the Lord, is it? But He goes on to say, “I have prayed for you, that your faith not fail. And after you have come through your time of testing, turn to your companions and give them a fresh start” (Luke 22:32 The Message).

The testing came in the Garden that night when Jesus was arrested and Peter ultimately fell – denying that he even knew Jesus. We know from Scripture that after the rooster crowed, “Peter went out and wept bitterly.”(vs.62). It would be the last time he saw Jesus until after the resurrection.

Can you imagine how tortured his soul must have been? We can hear the hissing whispers of the Accuser blasting him mercilesly for denying Jesus, for leaving Him in the hands of those who murdered Him. All hope was lost; Peter had nothing left to live for now.

But then something happened. Jesus rose from the dead.

Oh what a difference that made for Peter….and for us! Peter wrote, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy has begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead!” (1 Peter 1:3).

This was a very real and personal fact for Peter; when Jesus rose from the dead – so did Peter, in a manner of speaking. And now Peter writes his letters to fulfill the very directive which the Lord gave him: “And after you have come through your time of testing, turn to your companions and give them a fresh start.”

Do you think Jesus might say the same thing to you as you face your own fiery trial? And, oh, wouldn't it be wonderful if He did?!

You Can Trust the Lord to Get the Job Done

“But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, establish, strengthen, settle you” (1Pe_5:10).

I want to draw your attention to the specific word, “strengthen.” It is the exact same word that Jesus spoke to Peter before the testing he experienced at the hands of Satan. “When you come through the fiery trial” Jesus told him, “strengthen your brothers.” (see “A Fresh Start” from June 1)

And that is now what Peter is doing. And in so doing he lets us know that the pathway to the polished product is not going to be without some real challenges! “After you have suffered a while,” he writes to us, “Jesus will make you perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.”

Think about it. Any great artist who wants to make a sculpture that dazzles the multitudes with its beauty, must commit himself to the arduous task of hammering, chiseling, shaping, sanding, polishing and perfecting the work until it is ready to be revealed.

If an artist will go to such lengths over a single sculpture, what makes you think God is any less committed to you?

The day of your revealing is set and secured by God’s relentless resolve. However, between now and that day, the hammer has to drop, and the chisel has to cut.

There are many things in and about you that need to be removed; some go easy, falling away like autumn leaves in the wind. But some are so embedded into the stone of your soul that it requires many masterful blows to dislodge them. And God is not stopping until they are gone.

So, though you are called to glory, and will indeed make it there, you must nevertheless “suffer a while.” But never lose sight of this truth: God is completing us; putting on the finishing touches before our grand debut in the high courts of heaven.

One translation says, “God, who shows you his kindness and who has called you through Christ Jesus to his eternal glory, will restore you, strengthen you, make you strong, and support you as you suffer for a little while” (1Pe_5:10, God’s Word). This is a wonderful and encouraging thought, and it is true to the ways of the Lord. He blesses us with His presence AS we are going through great difficulty.

Peter would know this better than anyone. On that dark night when he betrayed the Lord, his soul was plunged into a deep pit of despair. And when Jesus died, all hope ended for Simon Peter. But then, on the Third Day, Jesus rose from the dead and Peter was born anew to a living hope!

That’s why we can believe it when he tells us that the Lord “will restore you, strengthen you, make you strong, and support you as you suffer for a little while.” It is what Jesus did for Peter, and He will do the same for you.

You can trust the Lord to get the job done — even though you suffer for a little while.

Sleeping Through a Revolution

“Awake, you who sleep, arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light.” (Eph_5:14).

Epic change is in the air while many have dozed off, seemingly oblivious to God . Perhaps we may be like Peter, James and John when the Lord invited them to a private prayer meeting on top of a mountain.

By the time Peter, James and John made the climb, they were so tired that they fell asleep while Jesus was praying. And as they were sleeping, two other invited guests arrived – Moses, and the Prophet Elijah!  Jesus was delighted to see them, and they began talking together about the Kingdom of God and the coming Age of Glory.

At that moment, Jesus began to shine brighter than the noon day sun – so bright, in fact, that it woke Peter up. The Bible then tells us, “Peter and the other two disciples had been sound asleep. All at once they woke up and saw how glorious Jesus was” (Luk_9:32, Contemporary English Version).

Hmmm. “They woke up and saw how glorious Jesus was” — Don’t you think it’s time for that to happen again?

Do you remember reading the story of Rip Van Winkle when you were a kid? I do, but the funny thing is I can’t remember what the point of the story was. I mean, I know it’s about a guy who fell asleep for a really long time – but beyond that I couldn’t recall anything else. So I decided to read it again and here’s what I discovered.

When Rip Van Winkle went to sleep, King George of England was the recognized monarch who ruled over the American colonies. Twenty years later when Rip woke up, George Washington was the President of the United States.

Rip Van Winkle had slept through a Revolution!

Peter, James and John were essentially doing the same thing on top that sacred mountain of transfiguration. And, as the evidence seems to suggest, much of the church today is in the exact same condition – sleeping through a revolution.

Over a hundred years ago Charles Spurgeon wrote, “A slumbering church compels Satan to make it his chief business to rock the cradle, hush all noise, and drive away even a fly lest it light upon the sleeper’s face. His great dread is that this church might rouse itself from her dreamy repose.”

Indeed.

We would do well in these lazy days to take heed to the words of the apostle Paul. “Make sure,” he wrote, “that you don’t get so absorbed and exhausted in taking care of all your day-by-day obligations that you lose track of the time and doze off, oblivious to God” (Rom_13:11, The Message).

Odd, don’t you think, that on the one hand we can be so busy about this and that – that we completely doze off and miss the very presence and work of God happening all around us?

We can be like Jacob who, waking from his sleep, said, “Ah, surely the Lord was in this place and I knew it not!” (see Gen_28:16).

A few years ago I was in Lincoln, Nebraska, and caught sight of a most unusual spectacle. An ambitious truck driver had attempted to move a large, historic church building along highway 103 with his woefully undersized rig. He possibly could have made it, but somewhere along the route he fell asleep at the wheel and ran off the road. When the rig listed to the right, the church slid off the truck and ended up stuck in the mud in the ditch.

The sight of this massive historic church building stuck in the mud in a ditch is disturbingly prophetic. Traffic was backed up for miles in both directions as gawkers came out in droves to see the strange sight. I can’t help but wonder how many churches in America are in just such a predicament today?

Somebody fell asleep at the wheel – and the church is stuck in the mud. And the watching World, far from being impressed with our theatrics and swollen words, merely drives by at a snail’s pace taking in the view and cracking a few worn out jokes.

We desperately need an Awakening – especially among those who serve as the leaders in Faith. For if they are indeed “asleep at the wheel” we are not only poised for ridicule – but quite possibly disaster. If the blind can lead the blind into a ditch, where will we end up if we follow sleeping leaders?

Awakening is a theme often repeated in scripture. “Awake! Awake! Put on your strength, O Zion!” Isaiah cried. “Awake to righteousness, and do not sin,” Paul said to the Corinthians. He put it this way when he wrote to the church in Ephesus – “Wake up from your sleep, Climb out of your coffins; Christ will show you the light!” (Eph_5:14, The Message).

A great example of this very thing is Lazarus, the friend of Jesus.

When the disciples heard the news that Lazarus had died, Jesus said, “Our friend Lazarus sleeps, but I go that I may wake him up” (Joh_11:11). Arriving at the tomb, Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come forth!” Lazarus came out of the crypt fully alive, but was still wrapped up like a mummy. Jesus said to those standing by, “Loose him, and let him go.” (see Joh_11:43-44).

The story of Lazarus shows us three things Jesus does to awaken a sleeping Church, and rouse a slumbering giant.

·          First, He gives us the ability to hear His voice — “Lazarus!” Just days before this miracle took place Jesus had said, “The hour is coming when those who are in the graves will hear the voice of the Son of God, and will live.” Lazarus heard His voice and came to life — so can you and I.

·         Second, Jesus gives us the power to become what He has called us to be — “Come forth!” When Jesus called Lazarus by name, that awakened him; when He told Lazarus to come forth from the tomb, that empowered him. The Lord never commands us do something that He does not empower us to do. What has He commanded you to do?

·         And third, Jesus gives us the help we need to be completely liberated from the effects and trappings of a failed life — “Loose him, and let him go!” Jesus spoke these words to those standing by, and He does the same for us.

There are key people – close friends and valued associates whom the Lord has put in our lives to help us get out of our grave clothes and into a new wardrobe. If we are willing for it to happen and will cooperate with the process, our lives will truly be transformed.

May we be like Peter, James and John in this day of opportunity? May we all at once “wake up and see how glorious Jesus is” (Luk_9:32, Contemporary English Version).

May we find the words of the apostle Paul to be confirmed in our own lives each and every day -- “Awake, you who sleep, arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light.” (Eph_5:14).

May the Lord forbid us to sleep through this revolution!

Disturb Us Lord

Disturb Us, Lord

“Since they didn’t bother to acknowledge God, God quit bothering them and let them run loose” (Rom_1:28, The Message)

There was this guy, a young reporter eager to be the first with some breaking news story, who got caught in the middle of a torrential downpour in West Texas. The rain fell so hard and the waters rose so fast, that people only had time to scurry to their rooftops. The young reporter was on a roof with a lady, watching the powerful waters sweep things pass them.

There were cows, and cars, and clumps of assorted shrubs whisking by, when the reporter spotted a crisp, clean white Stetson cowboy hat moving along in the current. He watched in amazement as the hat suddenly stopped, turn 180 degrees and started moving back against the tide. Then, it stopped again, turned around and flowed with the water back downstream. And, yet once more it stopped, turned back around and started going against the flow of water.

The young reporter grabbed his pen a notepad and said, “That’s a miracle! I’m going to write a story about the miracle of the floating Stetson!”

“That’s no miracle,” the woman sitting next to him on the roof replied, “that’s my husband Cecil. He said he was gonna mow that lawn come hell or high water!”

This dumb story is based upon a fact we all know – nothing ever drifts upstream. It always, always, always drifts downstream.

The same is true of our lives. Left to ourselves we will always settle for the least, not the best. Like a river unattended, we will take the path of least resistance, and suppose it had been the best route all along. We so easily set our lives on cruise control and zip along merrily, merrily — unaware that we are in fact drifting farther and farther away from God.

Today’s verse says, “Since they didn’t bother to acknowledge God, God quit bothering them and let them run loose.”

Woe unto us if God cuts us loose! For the only direction we have left to go is away from God.

Reaching back in history to a time when paganism and hedonism was on the rise, the apostle Paul shows us what that looks like when God cuts us loose.

“Claiming to be wise, they instead became utter fools. And instead of worshiping the glorious, ever-living God, they worshiped idols made to look like mere people and birds and animals and reptiles. So God abandoned them to do whatever shameful things their hearts desired. As a result, they did vile and degrading things with each other's bodies.

“They traded the truth about God for a lie. So they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator Himself, who is worthy of eternal praise! Amen. “That is why God abandoned them to their shameful desires. Even the women turned against the natural way to have sex and instead indulged in sex with each other.

“And the men, instead of having normal sexual relations with women, burned with lust for each other. Men did shameful things with other men, and as a result of this sin, they suffered within themselves the penalty they deserved.” (Rom 1:22-27 The Message)

Paul sums it up in a single sentence: ““Since they didn't bother to acknowledge God, God quit bothering them and let them run loose” (Rom 1:28 The Message). And that’s when all hell broke loose.

One cannot help but note how these words seem to be taken from the newspapers of today, yet they were written over 2,000 years ago. Whether it be in an ancient time and a land far away, or in modern times right in our own space – when we continually refuse to acknowledge God, then He will quit bothering them and cut them loose to run their own way. And the results are always the same.

Oh, May it never be said of anyone of us that God quit bothering us!

Disturb us, Lord!

The famous prayer by Sir Francis Drake would find good use upon our lips in these indifferent days; I offer it with an encouragement that you pray it in earnest until the Lord sets your feet on the higher way, the nobler way, the better way — and that He never quits bothering you; never lets you run loose from His purpose for your life.

“Disturb us, Lord, when we are too well pleased with ourselves. When our dreams have come true because we have dreamed too little; when we arrived safely because we sailed too close to the shore.

“Disturb us, Lord, when, with the abundance of things we possess, we have lost our thirst for the waters of life; and, having fallen in love with life as we know it, we have ceased to dream of eternity; And in our efforts to build a new earth, we have allowed our vision of the new Heaven to dim.

“Disturb us, Lord, to dare more boldly, to venture on wider seas where storms will show your mastery; where losing sight of land, we shall find the stars.

“We ask You to push back the horizons of our hopes; and to push us into the future in strength, courage, hope, and love.”

Sir Francis Drake -1577

The Defeat of a Dreadful Foe

“For there is a greater power with us than with him.” (2 Chronicles 32:7)

Have you ever wondered why the Lord let’s bad things happen to good people?

While reading my Bible I came upon a curious passage. It said, “After all that Hezekiah had so faithfully done, Sennacherib king of Assyria came and invaded Judah. He laid siege to the fortified cities, thinking to conquer them for himself” (2 Chronicles 32:1). This struck me as, well, unfair.

           

Here is a guy, Hezekiah, who was a very zealous, devout, and good man; who did what was good and right and faithful before the LORD his God. He re-instituted the Passover Feast, which had long been passed over. He restored the Temple, which had been desecrated. He removed all the remnants of idolatry throughout the land. He re-established the neglected Levitical priesthood, and saw that they were properly compensated for their services. He reformed the upper echelons of government, and thereby brought a great revival throughout the nation.

The Bible says, “In everything that he undertook in the service of God's temple and in obedience to the law and the commands, he sought his God and worked wholeheartedly. And so he prospered” (2 Chronicles 31:21 NIV). It was a good day’s work in the life of a good king.

Satan struck down from Heaven

And what is the Lord’s response? How does God reward this faithful servant? What does Hezekiah get for all his gallant duty? Simply this -- an invasion of his land by Sennacherib, the dreaded King of Assyria; the single, most feared empire of the day. And, as far as we can tell, the Lord did nothing to stop him. Rather,  the Lord actually permitted the invasion and empowered the invaders. But why? I’ll answer that in just a minute.

First, have you ever wanted to cry out to heaven, "Hey, what kind of a deal is this?" Have you ever wondered why your faithful service to God seems often to go unnoticed or unrewarded? Or, no matter how good you are – bad things just keep happening? Like David, we often ask, “Why do the wicked prosper?” Indeed, why do they? Obviously, there are factors at work here that we don’t yet appreciate.

And, remember the old campfire song? “Tempted and tried we’re oft made to wonder why it should be thus all the day long. While there are others living about us, never molested though in the wrong.” Exactly.

I wonder if Hezekiah may have whistled that tune when Sennacherib showed up with his army.

The song does go on to say, “Further along we’ll know more about it; further along we’ll understand why." 

Terrific.

OK. So back to my question, Why did God permit and empower Sennacherib to invade Hezekiah’s land? Are you ready for this? Because He was drawing the King of Assyria into a trap!

Let's see how the story turns out.

The Bible says that the king of Assyria "laid siege to the fortified cities, thinking to conquer them for himself." The fact is that God had indeed blessed Hezekiah, so much so that the king of Assyria became envious to the point of war. He invaded in order to possess for himself the many blessings God had showered upon Hezekiah.

Sennacherib brandished his blade, and bellowed out his demands to Hezekiah in full expectation of an immediate and cowering surrender – just as many other nations before had done. He could not have been more mistaken.

Hezekiah, good man that he was, never doubted the Lord for a moment, nor did he fear Sennacherib for an instant. Instead, he rallied the people and encouraged them, saying, "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged because of the king of Assyria and the vast army with him, for there is a greater power with us than with him. With him is only the arm of flesh, but with us is the LORD our God to help us and to fight our battles." And the people gained confidence from the words of king Hezekiah. (see 1 Ch.32:7,8)

While Sennacherib amassed his mighty army and prepared for a full frontal assault, King Hezekiah and the prophet Isaiah bowed their heads in prayer. And the Lord answered them.

The Bible says, “the Lord sent an angel, who annihilated all the fighting men and the leaders and officers in the camp of the Assyrian king.” Hey, you want to know how powerful God is? He sent one angel – ONE! – and annihilated Sennacherib’s army. Holy Moly! What would an army of angels do?

And what of Sennacherib? What happened to him?

The Bible goes on to say, “he withdrew to his own land in disgrace. And when he went into the temple of his god, some of his sons cut him down with the sword.”

Those who follow in the footsteps of Satan are doomed to meet his own fate. “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!” (Isaiah 14:12).

In this story Sennacherib is a figure representing Satan. Just as Sennacherib met a disgraceful end, so likewise will the devil.

Isn’t this in fact exactly what happened to Satan at the cross? Jesus, having accomplished everything His Father sent him to do, finally goes up Calvary’s mountain to die upon an old rugged cross.  Just like Sennacherib laying siege to Judah, Satan surely must have thought his moment of ultimate conquest had come. But, in the same manner that God had baited the Assyrian king into a snare from which there was no escape – so likewise was the devil drawn and quartered by Christ at the cross.

And as for us, we share in Christ’s triumph over all the power of the enemy. It is now said of us as it was of Hezekiah, “So the LORD saved Hezekiah and the people of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennacherib king of Assyria and from the hand of all others. He took care of them on every side. (see 1 Ch.32:20-22).

Earlier we asked how does God reward His faithful servant? What does Hezekiah get for all his gallant duty? The answer is profound – Hezekiah had the high honor of being the one king in all history who defeated the King of Assyria. You see, God set Sennacherib up for destruction by permitting him access into Hezekiah’s life.

 Is it possible God does the same in our lives today? Is it possible that He allows the devil access for no other reason but to bring him to ruin and an open shame? Is it possible that your faithfulness, your devotion, your service are often the occasion for the Lord to draw the devil into a trap?

Could it be that we are sometimes used as "devil bait" – the means whereby the Lord lures Satan into battle, and gives us the honor of actually overcoming the wicked one.

Oh how humiliating this must be to Satan, that Christ has placed His victory in the hands of school children who by faith put the devil to fright and flight! What must the hordes of hell think of their dark master now? He who once wielded such power as to shake nations, now buckles when a little girl prays!

Hezekiah reassured the people with a single word of truth, “for there is a greater power with us than with him.” That is even truer for us today. “Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world” (1 John 4:4).

My friend, take a new perspective on those unexpected invasions of your life; those times when darkness gathers about you though you have long been faithful and true. Brace yourself not for battle, but for victory. A celebration is coming, for the Lord has decided to promote you for your service, and to distinguish you with a badge of honor – the defeat of a dreadful foe at your hands.