225 - "God Takes Notice of You" 1 Chronicles 7-9; 1 Corinthians 7:17-40

    

Took a long walk tonight along these tracks behind our high school

thinking hard about life.

Wondering about these lists of people.

Wondering about my own life.

Does God notice? 

Do we go from sea to sea to follow Him?

Do we cross the river and go to the ends of the earth?

And why do we come?

Do we follow Him for loaves or love?

My life is not mine to control;

it is not for me to direct my steps.

Come Lord Jesus,

walk with us and help us leave our names on the Good List.

Disgrace.                                                                                                                                                      Idolatry.                                                                                                                                              Fruitfulness.                                                                                                                                       Faithfulness.
Men of Might. I Chron 7:2
Honorable kings.
First fathers.
Sons of Jacob.
Minglers.
Inconveniencers.
Great breaches.
Great wealth.
Strong cities.
God's Providence.
God's Promises.
Burdens carried old.
Houses of mourning.
Shattered families.
Sure promises.
Virtuous women.
Mighty militia.
Chief of princes.
Illustrious men.
Buried in oblivion.
Low ebbs in time.
Swords of injustice.
Pedigree higher
Numerous issues
One man's posterity
Covenants forever
Place in the sacred
Taken notice by God.

Divine Providence has called me.  And that makes all the difference in how I view this life of mine.

"Our comfort and happiness depend on what we are to Christ, not what we are in the world."  Matthew Henry.  But this celebrity society where I live wants me to be somebody special.  This ministry world where I live says leave a mega mark on the Kingdom of God.  And what if my life is ordinary and holy?

Make it our amibition to lead a quiet life.  Abiding where we have been placed by Divine Providence.

"Only as the Lord has distributed to each man, as God has called each, so let him walk."  I Cor 7:17.  "Let each man stay in that calling in which he was called."  I Cor 7:20.  "You were bought with a price.  Don't become servants of men."  I Cor 7:23.

PHOTO:  Sauntered on these railroad tracks behind the high school where I taught. We lived a stone's throw down the tracks. So powerful when the train bursts through yet no one notices me.  Yet, my God notices.

224 - “How to Win the War on Your Soul” 1 Chronicles 4-6 I Corinthians 7:1-15

224 You may be a brave warrior, a famous person, or a head of a successful family---all the reasons for success in our world today. But what did you do with your soul? #60000thoughts #talkingtomyself 

                                                              

Warriors.  The Famous.  The Heads.  They all look good on paper.  But God looks at their hearts.  And He is looking at my heart and yours.  This very day.  

I may not know all the right things to win the battle but I know how to win the war on my soul.  Satan has no hand, no snatch, no grip, no clutch.  None.  May that Warrior Spirit from within rise up to fight our battles this day, forward!

I am reminded of the NT verse: What does it profit you if you gain the whole world and lose your soul? 1 Chronicles 5:24-25. "But they were unfaithful to the God of their ancestors and prostituted themselves to the gods of the peoples of the land."

It is our privilege to be content with where and how and who and when God calls.  "God has called us in peace."  I Cor 7:15.  

PHOTO: Outside my classroom window of 14 years where I stopped to pray each day. I walked away from it May 2022 because of the stress of it all in a 10-hour per day job with no breaks. I have missed it way more than I dreamed but not for the reasons I left. This year has been one of the hardest years of my life. May I not ask for a thing before I utter the awe in prayer.  They were brave warriors, famous men, and heads of their families. All the measures of success in the eyes of this world.  But what did they do with their souls? 

223 - "Draw Near to God for the Joy of Encounter Before We Ask Him For A Thing" 1 Chronicles 1-3; 6.

                                                                

Genealogies. What do they really mean?  In a day where the seams of my heart are ripping apart, what can I take-away from this Word of God today. 

 God put these chronicles of men in the Bible for a good reason.  Profitable to us.  That's what the Bible calls every single word. So, we should read and not skip.  Therefore, don't leave it out.  This pedigree is attached to places; these people are attached to God. The Providence of God.   Keeping up generations of men.  Preserving degenerate scores of men.  God could "ease the burden under which it groans, but the divine patience lets the trees that cumber the ground not only grow, but propagate."  .
Matthew Henry

I think it so "off" that holy people have unholy children.  But here it is.  Josiah and Jehoakah.  One generation of holiness passes ... and another generation of despicable horror ensues.  There are times, I've felt so responsible.  But, here it is.  Holiness isn't passed down like jewels.  Holiness is bought with a pearl of great price.  And John 5:28-29 says all who are in their graves will hear His Voice one day calling them to rise in resurrection, in judgment. Those who have done evil will rise to be condemned.  

"We are now come to the register of the children of Israel, that distinguished people, who were to dwell alone, and not be reckoned among the nations. But now, in Christ, all are welcome to his salvation who come to him; all have equal privileges according to their faith in him, their love and devotedness to him." There is no better thing than a life spent to His Glory. M. Henry

May our prayers draw us near to God for the sheer joy of encounter before we ask Him for a thing. L. Crabb

PHOTO: Outside my classroom window of 14 years where I stopped to pray each day. I walked away from it last May 2022 because of the stress of it all in a 10-hour per day job with no breaks. I have missed it this year way more than I dreamed but not for the reasons I left. 2022 was one of the hardest years of my life. But wait, every year I say is hard. May I not ask for a thing before I utter the awe in prayer. 

222 - "Only in The Storm Will You Know There Is An Anchor" Psalm 149-150; 1 Corinthians 5

As we close the Book of Psalms, what did our Beautiful God stir in you that comes to mind?  What is stronger in you?  What are you afraid of?  What is God stirring up?  What lingers?

Psalm 150:6 "Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.  We all have breath.  Even our praises are with trembling. 

At this juncture of my life, I feel like I have fallen short in ways.  How arrogant to think if I had to do it all over again, I could do better---no, I'd just make different mistakes.  No perfect people.  Why am I so hard on myself? 66 LL says: No guarantees in life.  Only one:  God will lead me through even this to know Him better.  Thank you, Lord.

God is the One who rebuilds our lives, 

Who regathers us when we distance ourselves.  

He heals the heartbroken and bandages our wounds.  

I need a Savior this night to heal my broken heart as I deal with some hard realities about my life.  Our Lord is great with limitless Strength; we'll never comprehend what He knows and does.  God puts the fallen on their feet again.  I'm standing up.

What lingers with me is that our desires to live are good but the road to get there can be a bad one.  "You assume I relieve struggle and replace it with rest.  But I use struggle to uncover a rest beneath the struggle that no anguish can destroy.  The struggle with fear and pain will continue.  Only in the storm will you know there is an anchor."  Do I feel that Anchor this night?   

PHOTO:  Thought about these two many times while reading Psalms.  These Covid babies have inherited a crazy world.  May they find the Anchor of their soul forever.  And this Momma will always praise Him. 

221 - "I Do Not Judge Myself" Psalm 147-148. 1 Corinthians 4

                                                               

As we start to close the Book of Psalms, what did our Beautiful God stir in you that comes to mind?  What is stronger in you?  What are you afraid of?  What is God stirring up?  What lingers?

Psalm 147:2 God is the One who rebuilds our lives, Who regathers us when we distance ourselves.  He heals the heartbroken and bandages our wounds.  I need a Savior this night to heal my broken heart as I deal with some hard realities about my life.  Our Lord is great with limitless Strength; we'll never comprehend what He knows and does.  God puts the fallen on their feet again.  I'm standing up.

Psalm 147:11 God's not impressed with horsepower; the size of our muscles mean little to him.  We live in such a celebrity society that so grabs the attention of people from storied athletes to cute speakers with energy.  God's not impressed by it all.

What lingers with me is that our desires to live are good but the road to get there can be a bad one.  Our Lord God ... "You assume I relieve struggle and replace it with rest.  But I use struggle to uncover a rest beneath the struggle that no anguish can destroy.  The struggle with fear and pain will continue.  Only in the storm will you know there is an anchor."  Do I feel that Anchor this night?   
;

I feel so judged in life.  Beautiful thoughts on "judging." I love how Paul writes that he doesn't even judge himself.  There's something to that.  I think our Christian community digs too deep in a checklist.  If you are not doing all these good things, you're in sin.  I love this.  Let the LORD judge me and show up in His Mercy and even surprise me.  If I work so hard at repentance, isn't that arrogance.  I end up doing "penance," trying to make it all good.  Only God does.  When He shows up, it is Beautiful, Wild, and Heartfelt Repentance.  Nothing contrived in that place. 

I Cor 4:3 But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by any human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself. For I am not aware of anything against myself, but I am not thereby acquitted. It is the Lord who judges me.  Therefore do not pronounce judgment before the time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart.  

Have your way, my God, and disclose the purposes of our hearts.  And when we are raw, open, needy, our God moves in.  Deep gratitude for Psalm 147:3 - He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. 

PHOTO: 

220 - Psalm 136; 146. 1 Corinthians 3

We live in such a celebrity world, even a Christian celebrity world. If you haven't written a book, traveled the circuit, phenom on social media, you just haven't lived, have you? Not so at all. One of the most beloved people I know said to me that if my life turned out successful, then I would know that I had lived right. Not so at all. "Do not put your trust in princes, in human beings, who cannot save...blessed are those whose hope is in the Lord their God." Psalm 146:3 "His Pleasure is not in the strength of the horse, nor his delight in the legs of the warrior; the Lord delights in those who fear Him, who put their hope in His Unfailing Love." Psalm 147:11 So, send Your Word. May Your Word run swiftly. Psalm 147:15. This world in which I live is out-of-control.Do not put your trust in human beings who cannot save.

Blessed are those whose help is the God of Jacob.
Whose hope is in the Lord their God.
He watches over all the world.
The prisoners, the weak.
The bowed down.
He reigns.
Ps 146
v.3

Converting Grace softens frozen hearts, melts them free

Into tears of repentance and reflections flowing.

Once they were chilled beyond belief.

The thaw is very evident to all.

Yet how, no one knows.

Change is wrought.

God's Word.

Melts.

*** Thoughts taken from Matthew Henry's commentary

PHOTO:  These 3. The originals. Hit a rough patch these days. God is watching over them.  They will hear Him.  And they will melt.  And God will prevail.

219 - "A Sparkling Sonnet...Behold, Effusion of Joy" Psalm 133-135; 1 Corinthians 2

They call it a "sparkling sonnet." We call it one of the "songs of degrees." And the degree that it goes to is a very good one!  

David pens these words from bitter experience, and moved on to find "holy joy" among a community that is safe for him. If there is anyone who knows what it is like to be rejected by your father-in-law, it is David. A family divided. A family at war. And the patriarch dies. Through David's leadership, the mantra sings out loud: peace and pleasantness. We can change our world but it comes through patient dying to self, patient waiting for God to act. God acts in behalf of those who wait for Him ~ Isaiah 64:4 ~ and Scripture does interpret itself. 

  
"No wry words here. All is sweetness and light. . . . No wonder that brethren dwell in unity when God dwells among them, and finds his rest in them." The Treasury of David

"How good and holy pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!" Psalm 133:1
The Treasury notices that David does not attempt to measure the good or the pleasure. You can't even begin to tell how exceeding abundantly beyond excellent, Eph. 3:21, it is to be in that kind of holy fellowship with friends. The pendulum has swung full scale for David. 

How Good! How Pleasant! One commentary says that the use of "how" twice invites us to BEHOLD. And if we are in that kind of community, may we never take it anything but gratefully ours. 

  
David is referring to the gathering of Israel as one great family at the annual feasts. They call it an "effusion of holy joy." The drop of the background is Saul's jealousy and rejection and alienation and division. David exchanges their song for "mutual concord" as David ascends to the throne of this beautiful nation filled with such joy.   Joseph Addison Alexander.

Behold: Three Things:

1 ~ Behold they are joined together in doing good.  Are we?  "Workers together in any good work." 2 Cor 6:1. Turning away from evil.

2 ~ Behold, it is good morally.  "Good, as any grace is good." The Treasury. Let all that you do be done in love.

3 ~ Behold, this is so good in benefits. The consequences of dwelling in unity with my brothers brings much advantage to life. The word "dwell" in the Hebrew means abode. Are we living in perseverance of unity?

Father, no matter where we sit this day, in the midst of rejection or royalty, infuse each of us with joy.  You can.  May we be so caught up in peace and pleasantness.  Oh that so speaks to deep places in me.  Help us to behold wondrous things in our communities of faith.  

PHOTO:  It's the backyard of where Bob's dad lives.  Behold the Beauty.  Do we have eyes to see this day the beauty in the souls of those with whom we dwell.  

218 - "Cling to Me as I Am or Reshape Me" Psalm 130-132; 1 Corinthians 1

                                                                 

Psalm 130  Help, God—the bottom has fallen out of my life! Master, hear my cry for help! Listen hard! Open your ears! Listen to my cries for mercy.  For those things I hold in my heart, I cry for help!

Psalm 131 Denouement. This is what my God is saying to me right now in my life.  This chapter.  Cultivate a quiet heart. Wait for God.  Wait with Hope. Hope now; Hope always!  Will you wait in Hope with me for our God to show up this day and stir our hearts for good?  Hope now; Hope always!

Remember our hardships endured.
Remember David's mantra:
I will not even sleep until
I find a place for the Lord.
Until I find a place for my Lord
in all that I do, in all that I am.
Psalm 132:5.

An author once said:
"Either cling to Me as I AM or
reshape Me into who you want Me to be."
Larry Crabb

I've seen a few suns set in this life.  And as I read these psalms, something stirs within.  David was despised by family & friends.  David never knew he would sit on a throne.  David worshipped.  Nothing mattered more to him than God.

The stakes are high to find a place for my Lord and not try to make Him fit into my life, my expectations, my rights.  Here is David, who suffered well, singing in the midst.  His passion for God is all-consuming his throne.  From caves to thrones, He worshipped.  

And it didn't matter how hard David fell.  He preached to himself the Gospel of Grace as Tripp called it:  "Today in your private, life-interpreting conversation, will you preach to self the gospel of God's grace?"

"Do you study the Scriptures?  Let the Scriptures study you."  Tim Keller

Father, we all live with ourselves and see the depths of our who we really are.  Help us see clearly.  Let Your Word speak deeply.  May we live to worship You more than the things of this world.  Let the Scriptures reveal our motives, our plans, and our curved-in thoughts in the midst of grocery shopping and eating sushi.

PHOTO:  Another sun sets on the 360 Bridge as I worship you and pray for You to move in all of our lives.

"The more you see your own flaws and sins, 

the more precious, electrifying, and amazing 

God's Grace appears to you."  Tim Keller

217 - "God Gives Blessings In My Sleep" Psalm 127-129. Acts 18

Psalm 127:2.  I have to believe this verse---God gives blessings to His beloved even in his sleep.

It was one of the worst night terrors. Once again, I was trapped in a tunnel in another country with no escape. Bob & I prayed for 3 hours awake, unable to stop the tumbling thrashing thoughts. Psalm 129:3 The plowers plowed on my back. They made their furrows of suffering long. But the Lord is righteous. He has cut in two the thick cords of the wicked. Amen. 

I walked the long lonely corridor of further testing today. So did Bob. Something was wrong. Helpless, I lay on the gurney. Arise, O God. 

Three random texts came in---- 1 - God is holding you. No coincidence as I sat alone in a hospital of thousands. Held. 2 - Make room in your thoughts for God - Wonder when there is no room for God.           3 - A prayer for God Himself to appear. To manifest His Presence and Providence in the affairs of my little lower world. 

Arise, O God, on the helpless, Sleeping and Sick. God, lift up Your Hand.

Paul left Athens and went to Corinth. You would think that one of the greatest philosophers, one of the greatest preachers, would be welcomed with wide open arms. There was little fruit in Athens. And even here, Paul's listeners grew cold. So he went to those Gentiles who were wide open. And he kept on working, making tents---even when he could have had the maintenance of the church, the gifts from those he ministered to. He didn't stop. I know of a man just like him. I'm married to him. When churches grew cold; when givers stopped giving; when things fell apart. He moved on. With head held high. Psalm 3:3

PHOTO:  Picture out my car window.  The sun sets tonight and I'm pensive in closing the weekend spent with family. Did it count? Did they like me? Did I do well? May I be more concerned about the measures of my heart than the measures of success.

216 - “If Godliness Leads You Not, Then Weariness”

 

As the eyes of slaves look to the hand of their master,

    as the eyes of a female slave look to the hand of her mistress,

so our eyes look to the Lord our God,
    till he shows us his mercy. Psalm 123:2. 

Therefore. 

I have calmed and quieted my soul. Today. 
Like a weaned child from his mother.  
The Callicot commentary speaks to this metaphor.  "It is taken from a baby's first real sorrow when he not merely feels pain, but is allowed no access to that which was his solace hitherto.  He moans, and frets, and sobs, but at last is quieted by the love which is powerful to soothe, even when it must deny."

"If goodness lead him not, then weariness may toss him to God's breast."  George Herbert]

Psalm 123 I look up to You for help.  Like servants, alert to their master's commands, like a maiden attending her lady, We're watching and waiting, holding our breath, awaiting your word of mercy. Mercy, God, mercy! 

Psalm 125 Those who trust in God are like Zion Mountain: Nothing can move it, a rock-solid mountain 
you can always depend on.  What is stronger in me?  To depend on what I want to see happen?  TTo depend on life turning out the ways I want it to turn out?  To depend on strong people to come through for me?  No and No Andy No.  What is stronger in me---to depend on circumstances and people or to depend on an Invisible Hand on my life?  Yes, God's Hand is turning my tide!

PHOTO:  Rocky Mountains

215 - “Quiet My Soul in My Loss of What I Loved” Psalm 120-122. 2 Thessalonians 2

 

I will lift my eyes to the mountains ~ Psalm 121:1
But there is no help in the power & strength I find there.

My help comes from the LORD.
My transformed soul must quiet itself in my loss of what I loved, 

in my disappointment of what I had hoped for, 

in my sadness in how I am treated,

and in my suffering of what I had trusted. 

 My Help comes from the LORD Who made Heaven and Earth. 

 Be quiet, o my soul. 

 No mountain, no power, no strengths, other than My LORD. 

 He Who keeps me will not slumber this night. Psalm 121:3. 
Compose and Quiet my soul!  

I will not involve myself in great matters or in things too difficult for me. Psalm 127:2. 

Psalm 28:2 I will find my help from Your Presence in my life, in my community, in my church. I will look to Your Sanctuary. 

 Come LORD Jesus, be Present here. 

 Make me like these mountains which cannot be moved.

PHOTO:  Eatonville, Washington. I remember what I was thinking when this picture was taken.

214 - “The Unfolding of the Word” Psalm 119:89-176 1 Thessalonians 5

                                  

The unfolding of the Word gives Light. 

The entrance illuminates our understanding. 

Doesn't depend on how bright we are or are not. 

It gives understanding even to the simple. 

The word "pentach" signifies an opening. 

Someone said that metaphorically, it really means a "gate." 

And when the Light dispels the darkness, and lights up our minds, 

we enter the porch.

What happens when we enter in the house? 

May we be so taken with the Word of God to delight, meditate, study, and marvel at it over and over and over. 

Huram-abi knew how to work with iron, stone, gold, silver, bronze, wood.  He could do it all---engravings.  But all I can think of this day is that I want some iron in my soul.  I'm far too flappable, malleable, slippery, flacid.  The Holy Spirit knows how to put that iron in my soul.  And so, we pray. 
Psalm 119: 175 
Invigorate my soul , O God, 
so I can praise You well, 
use Your Decrees to put iron in my soul. 

PHOTO:  Because the beginning is understanding for all of us. Light coming through an opening in the sky. A gate of wisdom for us this day.

213 - “There Is Meaning & Mercy in Your Suffering” Psalm 119:1-88

I am like a wineskin in the smoke, I have not forgotten your Word. Psalm 119:83

Wine-bottles of the East are skins.                                                                                                               The custom was to hang the skin of wine in the smoke of a fire to mellow the wine and bring it to perfection.  

I learned in school you always have to ask: So what's the point?  

The psalmist finds consolation in this metaphor that my afflictions have "meaning" and "mercy."              They have been sent by the Creator to act on me like the smoke does on the wine.  

The Tuck commentary says: Under all these afflictions, may we refuse to part with our faith.  Yet, we falter.  Yet, we don't forget the Word either.  

R. Tuck says: "What seems to be in mind is a long waiting-time, which was also a time of suffering and strain."  Waiting for God.  Watching for God as this world passes away.  

And Tuck says the major question is this:  "What was he doing during this hard waiting-time?" ...     Holding fast to his integrity;                                                                                                                  keeping obedience and trust;                                                                                                           persistently ordering his life according to the Divine statutes.  

Send your Word, O God! And may we throw ourselves on the Divine rhetoric.

PHOTO: A tender passing moment steeped in suffering and joy, meaning and mercy.

212 - “The Hand of God Turned The Tide” Psalm 116-118. 1 Thessalonians 4

 

 116:  1 - GOD TAKES THE HAND OF THE HELPLESS
I love God because He listened to me, listened as I begged for mercy. He listened so intently as I laid out my case before him. Death stared me in the face, hell was hard on my heels. God takes the side of the helpless; when I was at the end of my rope, he saved me. 

I said to myself, "Relax and rest. 
Soul, you've been rescued from death;
Eye, you've been rescued from tears
Foot, you've been kept from stumbling." 
I'm striding in the presence of God, 
Alive in the land of the living! 

Something about these verses stirs up something so good in me.  Rescued by a very Good God.  

Striding in His Presence in the humdrum and holy business of this day.  Alive!  And, despite a ton of bad luck!  Ha.

Psalm 117:  1 - 5  GOD IS MY CHAMPION
Praise God, everybody! Applaud God, all people! His love has taken over our lives; Pushed to the wall, I called to God; from the wide open spaces, he answered. God's now at my side and I'm not afraid; who would dare lay a hand on me? God's my strong champion; "The hand of God has turned the tide! 

Brings to my mind:  The LORD is my Shepherd, I shall not want.  So what does that mean as I read these verses about a Present God?  Maybe the only thing we know will never let us go is God. Listen to my life.  What do I want more than my Shepherd?

Hope for a new chapter.  Hope for a better me.  Hope for new strength.  

I Thes 4:11 that you make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, and to do your own business ...

"It is very desirable to have a calm and quiet temper, and to be of a peaceable and quiet behaviour. Satan is busy to trouble us; and we have in our hearts what disposes us to be unquie; therefore let us study to be quiet." 

PHOTO:  All those helpless times in the city where I lived in. Austin. Where God turned the tide.

211 - "Not To Us, Not To Us" Psalm 113-115, 1 Thessalonian 3

Psalm 113:7 God raises the poor from the dust.  Lifts the needy from the ash heap.  Trusting.

God rescues the wretched who have been thrown out with the trash.                                                                  He seats them among honored guests.                                                                                                        And He gives the childless joy as the parents of children.   

This week, I have wrestled about my life, my place, my heart---

there is a verse that kept coming to mind:  Psalm 115:1 Not to us.  

Not to us, but to your Name be Glory.  

This life is not about me yet I am enmeshed in figuring it out.  Not to us but to your Name bring Glory!

I Thes 3:11-13 May God our Father himself and our Master Jesus clear the road to you! And may the Master pour on the love so it fills your lives and splashes over on everyone around you, just as it does from us to you. May you be infused with strength and purity, filled with confidence in the presence of God our Father when our Master Jesus arrives with all his followers. 

PHOTO:  These two grandkids are just the best! We could not have enjoyed the bats, the trampolines, the skating rink, the pool, the go karts, the arcades, the aquarium any more!!! Thanks for visiting us Zekey!  August 2023

210 - "Trusting In Outcomes or Omnipotence" Psalm 106, 111-112. 1 Thessalonians 2

No sin,
No suffering,
Nothing Stops us from ascribing glory to God.
Bless His Name.
May the ambition of our hearts
be bountiful.  No lean souls.

Charles Spurgeon writes that Psalm 106 begins and ends with Hallelujah! Blessed be His Name.  And all the space inbetween bemoans Israel's sin and the extraordinary patience of our God.  "We do well to bless the Lord both at the beginning and the end of our meditations when sin and grace are the themes." This sacred song is occupied with the historical part of the OT.  It's the history that David holds. Spurgeon said the history of Israel is "so depreciated and yet David esteemed them beyond his necessary food, and made them his songs in the house of pilgrimage." Divine Goodness over all rising generations. 

"But soon they forgot what He had done.
And they did not wait 
for His Plan to unfold."
Psalm 106:13

And in the desert
they gave in!
May we wrestle well in these deserts of ours. 

When that word comes down to us?  

The one we hoped never to hear?  What will we do?  

Will our faith flame strong?  It's not that our faith will change our circumstances.  

It's all that our God will show up fully to quiet and calm our hearts. 

For in this world, you will have troubles. 

Surrendered.  Dependent.  

And our plans may change, 

but the purposes of our heart remain forever.

Psalm 112:7 He is not afraid of bad news.  His heart is firm, trusting in the LORD.

May I see a little deeper this moment that life is all about 

what I am trusting in---outcomes or Omnipotence.

PHOTO:  It's the place where I go to pray and think and walk and cry.  The Quarries Lake.

209 - "Incarnate Words Impossible to Capture Yet Fleshed Out in the Everydayness" Psalm 104-105. 1 Thessalonians 1

Psalm 105:4 - Look to the Lord and His Strength. Seek His Face Always.

 Keep your eyes open for God, watch for his works; be alert for signs of His presence. 

God speaks.
It may be in the humdrum of life or it may be in hurts that pierce our hearts and make our blood run cold. God speaks.

"And the reason that His Words are Impossible to Capture in Human Language is of course that they are ultimately always Incarnate Words. They are words fleshed out in the everydayness, no less than in the crises of our own experience." (Buechner). 

Whether you heard him in the humdrum or hurts of this day, keep your eyes open for Him.  What sign was His Presence to you this day?

I Thes 1:1 - Paul says grace to you. Oh, this day, may grace abound in the pounding of our hearts. "For the word of the Lord has sounded forth from you...your faith toward God has gone forth." 

 I Thes 1:8. Is there any other way to truly live? 

 May the words of my mouth this day, 

this urgent matter at hand, 

may my faith be known, 

may it be the Word, 

not my dilemma.

For we have all turned to God from idols to serve a living and true God. And wait for Him. I'm not waiting on any man. I Thes 1:9.  Not waiting on any report.  Those are just words on a paper.  I have the true Word, the Living Word. 

And we accept this Word for what it truly is. The Word of God. Not the word of man.

PHOTO: Hey Kids, always keep your ears and eyes open for God. What is He saying to you Today?

208 - "The Most Beautiful Utterances Ever Spoken" Psalm 99-100, 102. Acts 17:16-34

Someone once said that this "Holy" Psalm, the Sanctus, is one of the most beautiful utterances that ever "leaped from mortal lip." The Treasury of David.

"The Lord reigns. Let the people tremble." Psalm 99:1

If we really saw what was happening, how God has overthrown the reign of evil, 

how God has set up the Kingdom of righteousness, justice, peace, goodness, love and truth, 

it would stir the depths of our being. 

These words are not idle words, they are our very life. Deut 32:47. No trifle here. No small thing.  

"The King in His Might loves justice." Psalm 99:4

This most beautiful psalm ever written comes from the aging lips of a man who has been through betrayal, loss, waywardness, and more. A man who found God in the midst of a mess after mess.

Today is our last day of 17 years in the city of Austin. We move in the morning. We have faced betrayal, loss, cancer, traumatic brain injury, and more I cannot even mention. It has been our utmost desire to fall forward in faith on a Good God. Too much of my life has been lived on a false assumption, a false hope:  "You assume that God relieves struggle and replaces it with rest."  Larry Crabb. The Lord reigns. Let the people tremble. 

Here is David's life.  A testimony of holiness.

PHOTO: Walking through the Botanical Garden in Austin.  Do I really see what is happening in my life?  I trust.

207 - “Light Will Shine One Day” Psalm 96-98. Acts 17:1-15

 Can I let go and leave my hurts in His Hands. Psalm 96 - God is coming to set everything right on earth.  (God said this 4 times in this chapter.)

 

Am I arrogant in how I talk about other people?

 Psalm 97:8 - Am I proud of my ragamuffin gods?  I hope not. for he guards the lives of his faithful ones
and delivers them from the hand of the wicked.

Light shines on the righteous

and joy on the upright in heart.

Psalm 97:11
Light is sown for the righteous.
Scattered like seed.
And it will produce light or the promise of it.
We might reap in this life.  Maybe next.

Though we sow in tears, we will reap in joy.
One Fine Day! 

All those tears are places where God may enter.

In Acts 17: 16 Paul enters the pinnacle city of religious commitment, Athens. The place where scholars long to be. But, Paul isn't captivated by what he sees. He calls it as it is: idols. God isn't calling us to improve ourselves and he shoots down their mistaken philosophy. And Paul calls it what it is: sin. The service of idols. Rather than the service of the one, true, God. That's the good work Paul came to do in Athens, the center of philosophy. May we lay down our philosophical talk today and serve the Living God. 

Acts 17:26.  It's the verse God gave me on the day my first daughter was born.  This God is not served by human hands.  He gives life and breath and everything to you.  And He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth.  He determined your allotted periods and the boundaries of your dwelling place.  That you should seek God!  And feel your way toward Him and find Him.  She will wherever on the face of the earth she is.  He is not far from each of us.  In Him, we live and move and have our being.

PHOTO: Light Shines. God Determines. Seek God.

206 - “My Busy Thoughts Multiply Within Me” Psalm 93-96. Philippians 4.

  

When my anxious thoughts multiply within me, 

Your Consolations will delight my soul. Psalm 94:19

My heart was filled with various and perplexing busy thoughts.

I was, I am tormented with the cares and fears about my future state.

Reach for the Consolations when the branchings of the heart hit hard.

I had to go back to subbing at the public schools in Austin---a challenge.

When you get older, it's a different ballgame in life or maybe it's that I just still

have not found my niche of contribution.  Trusting God in the midst of the emptiness.

The comforts that delight our soul are at our fingertips—

*the promises of God in His Word 

*the Word of God set home by the Holy Spirit on our souls, 

*and all those memories of His Care and Kindness to each of us in days gone by. 

The word for thoughts is used to describe branches of trees, 

thick and entwined, showing just how perplexed and distressing our thoughts really are. 

Praying for you and for me that God will open His Promises, His Word, and apply it to our souls.

Thank you, God.  This means so much that you would do this for us.

Can I let go and leave my hurts in His Hands?
 The comforts that delight our soul are at our fingertips—

*the promises of God in His Word 

*the Word of God set home by the Holy Spirit on our souls, 

*and all those memories of His Care and Kindness to each of us in days gone by. 

The word for thoughts is used to describe branches of trees, 

thick and entwined, showing just how perplexed and distressing our thoughts really are.  

Psalm 96 - God is coming to set everything right on earth.  (God said this 4 times.).  So, I can let go any insults, any harm done to me for my King will set it straight someday.   

 

205 - "Live As If We See The Whole of Life" Psalm 89, 92. Philippians 3

Bend an ear, God; answer me. I'm one miserable wretch! 

You put the arrogant ocean in its place 
You put your arrogant child in moments like today
that I may see into my heart.

I've thought a whole lot this year about the story of the Prodigal Son.  In his book about the prodigal, Henri Nouwen writes:  "Can I let the younger and older son grow in me to the maturity of the compassionate father?"  The father is who I must become, he writes.  As the father deals with his own anger and loneliness, his anger turns to solitude and his loneliness turns to gratitude.  I am that younger and older brother.  Frustration.  Anger.  Pain.   Can you grow both of my sides into a compassion that moves into the lives of others in the midst of my own mess.

Oh God! Cause us to come to you for wisdom. 

That we may allot our time by by what You know. 

That we may set store by time.

“That God would enable us to form such an estimate of life, 

that we shall be truly wise; 

that we may be able to act 

"as if" we saw the whole of life.” 

I'm walking on air. God has been so very good to us. Psalm 89:17.

"That I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings.  Phil 3:10.

Knowing God here is an experimental knowledge of the power of the resurrection.
One commentary called it "feeling the transforming efficacy and virtue" of His death and resurrection. 

What about us?  What keeps us from the ultimate ambition to know God?

PHOTO: The faces of the people in Budapest still haunt me.  So sullen.  So sad.  So striking.  The distrust of Communism still runs through the Danube River.  They are not a free people.  God raise them up to be like the father running for joy to his sons.  

204 - "Breathe Life Into Me" Psalm 67, 71. Philippians 2

O Lord, Do not delay.  Please hasten to our words, our hearts.  We are all poor and needy this day.  May we see how we can accomplish nothing today except through Your Power.  When will you come to us? Seal our hearts in Your Grace today.  Steady our ways.  Sweep us off our feet.  Show up in ways we don't expect.  And may you find us surrendered.

What do I really think way down deep inside when my strength is spent? 

Physical strength shot. 

Emotional strength waning. 

Do I worship? 

Actually, days like today, I'm just trying to hold on and ask a Very Gracious God to help me see what surrounds me on days like today when my strength is spent. I spent it all last night. I am very aware that I awake with a fresh clean slate. But I don't want to spend the same strength again tonight. 

It's actually a very good position to be in---dependent. Psalm 71:9 

Forsake me not when my strength is spent. Psalm 71:20 

God has made me see many troubles and calamities. 

Why am I giving in to this weight of sin. My anger does not accomplish His righteousness. 

Talking to myself.

He will bring me up again! 

Revive me again---the word in the Greek for "revive" means: To breathe life into me.

That's it!

"Have this mind in you, the mind of Christ. The Energy working in you is God's Energy.  Phil 2:4, 13.  
"There is an Energy deep within you, God himself willing and working at what will give him the most pleasure.  Jesus can fill my mind and direct my will.  You can empty yourself of parading success, winning recognition, depending on good treatment from others."

PHOTO:  The mighty mountains of Seattle.  Standing here a few weeks ago.  Seeing my deep need for dependence on God to make it through this life of mine.

203 "Let The Word of God Have Run of Your House" Psalm 33, 54, 66. Philippias 1

                                                                  

Oh Father, there's not a person on earth who has not lived a day without being "curved in" on ourselves. In our secret hearts, forgive. "You get a fresh start, your slate's wiped clean. God holds nothing against you and you're holding nothing back from him." How foolish of me to think that there is any good greater than the good of knowing God! Psalm 33:16-17 "No king succeeds with a big army alone, no warrior wins by brute strength. Horsepower is not the answer; no one gets by on muscle alone." 

"Only in the storm will you know there is an anchor...I've not wanted an anchor in the storm. I've wanted a quick trip to shore." No spiritual aspirin available. No anesthetic for my storms. Just a revelation of what life is like for the person who lives in the storm with his eyes fixed on Me. 66 LL 

What if what we have to offer----no one really wants it.  What do we do then?
Well, we rightly divide the Word of God.

Let the Word of God have run of your house.
We live by the Truth, longing for holiness, serving out of dutiful hearts.
With willing hearts.
With full-faced front lives on the line.
With upright words.
With motives turned outward to all.

We may prefer affirmation---someone notice what I'm doing; someone throw me a word.
We may prefer comfort---don't let the other shoe fall, no---no more.  Enough.
We may prefer peace---being safe at all costs; no bad reports.

"This I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and all discernment; so that you may approve the things that are excellent."  Phil 1:9-10

May we choose Truth, Holiness, and Service over our own selves.  

PHOTO: Eatonville, Washington. The place where Bob's Mom & Dad lived. You walk down their driveway and expect to see them coming out. You hear those voices talking about life gone by. You see the snow-capped slopes from their windows. You long for one more conversation to say what's on your heart for them. My children's grandparents.

  

202 - "I Have Installed My King" Psalm 1-2, 10; Acts 16:22-40

We open the book of Psalms. It's a Hand reaching out to grasp ours in the midst of our storms and tears and confusion and fears. I have assumed wrongly about life: I have wanted God to step in and rescue me from all my struggles with people and life. Relieve me of this oppression. Replace it with Rest. But what God did: He has used my Job experiences "to uncover a Rest beneath the struggle that no Anguish can destroy. The struggle with fear and pain will continue. Only in the storm will you know There is an Anchor." 66LL. This is not what my world tells me. My world wants me to have no struggles, no worries, no pain. If you do, people assume that you are: Not walking with God. Not trusting God. Not understanding God and His Goodness. Not in God's will. All of the Above. A friend said to me the other day: "Let's just be positive and trust God." Or, in other words: Let's just deny what is really going on. Ps 1:1 - Blessed is the man who doesn't walk in the counsel of his disillusioned friends but in Truth. Ps 2:6 - As for me, I have installed my King...I take Refuge in God not things working out. 

PHOTO: The age-old trees in Pagosa Springs. Behind me, the San Juan Forest burning unexpectedly, uncontrollably, unnerving. Meditate on these psalms day and night.

201 - "Divine Providence Prevails" 2 Kings 24-25; Acts 16:1-21

Embroiled in a midnight mess, I came to these Scriptures today. There is no excuse for my sins even though prompted by another's sin. We bump up against other's sins every day of our lives and it gives us no peace if we give in to wrongdoings. The evil continued in this story today is frightening. May we never be complacent about our sin. 

"It is for the sins of a people that God hides from them the things that belong to the public peace. And in fulfilling the secret purposes of his justice, the Lord needs only leave men to the blindness of their own minds, or to the lusts of their own hearts. The gradual approach of Divine judgments affords sinners space for repentance, and believers leisure to prepare for meeting the calamity, while it shows the obstinacy of those who will not forsake their sins." Matthew Henry

And the side story that grips me is found in 2 Kings 25:27 - Divine Providence is always moving. Can we find the Good in the midst of the evil? 

Oh Father, You silenced me through this story of evil kings following each other's footsteps. No longer self aware of their own departure from grace, decision to grovel, dilemma of magnitude. Oh! Deal with my own heart. I lay these things before you that I am wrestling with. Thank you for stirring me to righteousness.

PHOTO: It's midnight here. Madness. Mystery. Silence. Surrender.

200 - "No Better Way To Live" 2 Kings 22-23; Galatians 6

                                                           

Set this beautiful world aright for us.

Answer our humble prayers from tender hearts.

O God, ride the heavens to our help.

O God, turn our worlds right side up.

II Kings 22:19 - No better way to live than with a heart that is tender and a life that is humbled before God.  

Hezekiah knew.  

He became mortally ill. Isaiah told him to set his house in order for he was not going to make it. Yet Hezekiah replied to the God He trusted: Remember now, O LORD, I beseech you, remember how I've walked before you in truth with a whole heart ... and he wept bitter tears. There is no one like the God of Jeshurun who rides the heavens to our help ~ Deut 33:26.

And God changed His Mind, instantly. No waiting on this one.  

I heard your prayer.  

I saw your tears.

I will heal you.

We just don't know in this life what God will send, reverse, bless, re-direct. Our goal is not to control our circumstances, never to demand that we think we know what our Good God should do. God give us tender hearts, humbled under Your Mighty Hand. II Kings 22:19. Our ambition is God Himself.

Psalm 20:5 - God, would you fulfill our petitions. May we lift up our banner in Your Name Alone and put an end to this ambition.

You were running a good race.  Who cut in on you?  Can we name what we are doing in the race of life?  It's not our goals to go after.  It is His Spirit to impart. What about our passions and desires here on this earth?  Crucified.  Galatians 6:24

The king stood by the pillar and made a covenant before the Lord

to walk after the Lord, and

to keep His commandments and His testimonies, 

and His statutes with all his heart and all his soul

to carry out the words of this covenant that were written in this book.

 II Kings 23:3.  

And all the people entered into the covenant.  King Josiah had just heard from his God that he could not stop the ruin of Jerusalem.  All we can deal with is what is happening in our own soul. We can lead people but we cannot make them follow God, not even our own children.  We lay them in the lap of our LORD.  We can invite, intrigue, engage, entertain in sober ways what is holy and what counts in life.  Josiah led his people to abolish idolatry, serve God in righteous living, find true repentance.  Many of those he led were compliant hypocrites who will stand before God, alone.  While Josiah could rein in the wickedness, he couldn't change their very souls.  

Judah and Jerusalem overflowed with wickedness. Would our forefathers have thought that America could do the same and evolve into such an evil place?  I grew up with broken people who never locked their doors, fearing no break-ins.  No more.  We all live behind bars and locks and gates.  In Josiah's 18 years of exemplary service, he lived from a humbled heart.  Yet, he could not change his nation.  "The records of God's word teach that all the real godliness or goodness ever found on earth is derived from the new-creating Spirit of Jesus Christ." M.Henry

Through Passion and Passover, revival broke out under the good hand of Josiah. The Mighty Hand of God.  God rained on them His Presence, His Favor.  Josiah must have been beside himself.  But, it only lasted until the traitors cut off the life of Josiah to raise up the next king.  Evil reigns again.  And the point of the passage is t.h.i.s. ~ We must take care of our own souls to stand next to the pillars in our own lives, make a covenant, keep His Word, carry out His Words. And when we can't; when we don't; when we won't, then take care of your soul and repent under the Holy Hand of a very Good God Who is always doing us good. 

Neither before nor after Josiah was there a king like him who turned to the Lord as he did—with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his strength, in accordance with all the Law of Moses. 2 Kings 23:16

Never before or after---a king like him---yet his own son, Jehoahaz, could not be influenced.  I remember "telling" words about a decade ago spoken to me in angst.  "We will see who was right by the size of your ministry."  I didn't believe it then.  I don't believe it now.  Josiah's own son couldn't be swayed by the strongest of kings.  We will all individually give account to God for our lives not for how our sons and daughters and followers turn out.