Be Still

Are you someone who is continually busy? Are you the type of person who cannot sit still for long? Do you feel compelled to be up doing something all the time? What are the things you are doing? Are they important? Do they have to be done? Have you taken time to rest?

We all know people who are constantly moving about and doing something. We may be one of those people ourselves. We may have a list as long as our arm that we believe needs to be done. But all of us need to rest. We need to take time to unwind and be calm.

I understand the busyness. I am one of those who has a list of things to be done, some of them have been on my list for a couple years. Yet, it seems every day more things get added to the list than I get checked off. Even when I take time to sit down, I’m busy. I’m on my phone or computer. My mind is also thinking. I’m always reorganizing my list in my brain and attempting to determine a more efficient way to get more done.

Yet, we all need to be still, be quiet, and focus on God. We need to take time to lay everything before him and wait for his direction. We need to seek his priorities and learn that not everything has to be done. When I have taken time to do just that, I have found that following God’s way is always better. When we follow his direction and his priorities, what is truly important is accomplished and those unimportant things get left behind.

I pray we all make time to sit quietly with God. I pray we ask him to reveal his priorities and direction to us. I pray each one of us will discover that God’s way is always the best. Sit quietly with God. Ask God to reveal his priorities. Follow God’s direction. Know that God’s way is best.

Psalm 37:7

Be still before the Lord, and wait patiently for him; 

do not fret over those who prosper in their way, 

over those who carry out evil devices.

Speechless

Have you ever been shocked? Have you been surprised. Have you been speechless? What shocked you? Was it an amazing performance? Was it someone showing up unexpectedly? Was it reuniting with an old friend or a long-lost family member?

Being shocked can be good or not so good. It can leave us speechless or shouting for joy. Joseph’s brothers were left speechless. He was the last person they anticipated seeing in Egypt, let alone as the most powerful person in Egypt aside from Pharoah.

Joseph’s brothers had sold him into slavery. He had then been sold to Pharoah’s chief guard, accused of trying to take advantage of the guard’s wife, thrown in prison, interpreted a couple dreams, and finally brought into Pharoah’s service. His rise from being hated by his brothers because of a couple dreams to being sold into slavery and ultimately rising to being a top leader in Egypt was a windy and rocky road.

We may experience a windy and rocky road ourselves. Or we may know someone else who has had a checkered past and finally came to Christ. Perhaps we haven’t seen them or even walked away from them because of their behavior. Maybe seeing them after the transformation shocks us. We may be speechless. We may even be like Joseph’s brothers, wondering if the transformation is real.

We must remember that God is always at work. He does amazing things in some of the least expected people. Should we be surprised? Not really. Yet, as humans, we are surprised because our limited imagination and lack of faith. But it is those unexpected moments when God shows up that builds our faith.

I pray we all know God is at work. I pray we believe Jesus can transform lives. I pray each one of us are surprised by God and our faith is made stronger because of the surprise. God is at work. Jesus transforms lives. Be surprised by God. Build your faith. Trust God always.

Genesis 45:3 Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph. Is my father still alive?” But his brothers could not answer him, so dismayed were they at his presence.

Wake Up!

Do you sometimes feel as though you are walking around in a fog? Do you wonder if you fully understand what you should be doing? Have you sought to relieve yourself of that feeling? Have you decided to open your eyes to the reality of your situation?

More people than we would like to think are walking around in a fog. They have been deceived into thinking they are doing well. They have been fooled to believe it is their desires that matters most. They are lost in a false belief of self importance.

Jesus tells the church in Sardis that they need to wake up. They need to strengthen what remains. There is a remnant that still desires to do God’s will. They still want to perform the good works God had in store for them. They had not been fooled by the false desires of selfish ambition.

Have we been fooled by false desires? If we have gotten comfortable in our wealth or stability or our current situation, we have been fooled. At no time does Jesus nor His apostles say we are to be comfortable. In fact, quite the opposite. We are to be uncomfortable and in mission for Christ.

Sitting inside the four walls of the church is not what we are called to. We are called to be in community, serving those in need, bringing the good news to the lost. For most of us, that means we will be uncomfortable. God has set those good works before us. It is our commission and duty to carry them out.

I pray we all realize we are not to be comfortable. I pray we seek to not be fooled. I pray each one of us will take up the good works God has prepared for us and set aside our personal desires. Be uncomfortable. Do not be fooled. Do good works. Do God’s works.

Revelation 3:2 Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is on the point of death, for I have not found your works perfect in the sight of my God.

Great Reward

How far are you willing to go? How far will you go to protect those you love? How far will you go to achieve your goal? How far will you go to get what you want? Are you willing to forfeit it all? Are you willing to stand out in a crowd? Are you willing to be hated by others?

Strange questions, huh? So let’s walk through them. If we are willing to do whatever it takes to protect our loved ones, achieve a goal, or to get what we want, we must be willing to be hated. Anyone in the spotlight, anyone who stands out in a crowd is hated by someone.

Jesus says we are blessed when people hate us because we believe in and follow Him. It cannot be mere belief. For we read in James 2:19 that even demons believe and shudder. No, it must be belief and trust and following His commands. When we do all three, there will be people who will hate us. They will know that we see their reluctance to follow and the evil they commit.

The quandary, the crux of the issue for us is this: are we willing to be hated? Most of us try to get along with others. We like to fit in. We want to be part of the crowd. We will change our allegiance to be with those we deem to be the right people, whether it is a sports team or even a nation. Our desire to be accepted often overwhelms our willingness to do what we know is right.

Following Jesus is not for the faint of heart. It not only requires us to give Him our heart and soul, it requires us to be willing to be hated, to be ridiculed, and to be made fun of by others. I may mean we lose friends. But Jesus tells us to rejoice and jump for joy. Why? Our reward in heaven is greater than all that we think we will miss here on this earth.

I pray we all decide to follow Jesus. I pray we are willing to be hated by non-followers. I pray each one of us rejoice and jump for joy knowing we will receive a great reward in heaven. Believe in Jesus. Trust Jesus. Follow Jesus. Rejoice. Jump for joy. Your reward is great.

Luke 6:22-23 “Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven; for that is what their ancestors did to the prophets.”

Deep Roots

Have you thought of being poor as being blessed? Have you thought being hungry was a blessing? Have you thought weeping meant a blessing? I dare say not many, if any at all, would think any of these are a blessing. We likely think of them as a lack of blessing, if not a curse.

Yet, Jesus says that the poor are blessed. Why would He say that? It is often the poor who trust God more than the rich. The rich believe they can take care of themselves. The poor rely on God to provide for their needs. They often experience God in ways the rich do not. Their faith is increased out of necessity.

When Jesus speaks of the hungry, He is not only speaking of physical hunger but a hunger to know Him. If we desire to know Jesus in a deep, personal way, our desire will be achieved. If we seek to be His follower with our whole heart, He will draw us close to Him. If we strive to know more about Jesus, about the Father, and about God’s will, we will be enlightened.

Weeping can bring about healing and can be a motivator. When we weep in our grief, we are comforted by those God puts next to us. Our grief is lessened when we know the loved one we lost is going to spend eternity with God. Yet, we may weep over those we are trying to bring to Christ. We may feel sorrow if they will not listen. Yet, Jesus promises us that we will laugh one day.

All of these situations require us to trust Jesus, trust the Father for the outcome to become a reality. We put our trust in Jesus when we accept Him as our Lord and Savior. As we experience God in our lives, our trust grows deeper, our roots go deeper into the foundation of Jesus, the cornerstone of God’s kingdom. The deeper we go, the more we are nourished.

I pray we all put our trust in Jesus and the Father. I pray we seek an intimate relationship with Jesus. I pray each one of us will experience Jesus in our lives and grow roots deeper in Him. Trust Jesus. Trust the Father. Seek an intimate relationship with Jesus. Experience God. Grow your roots deep in Jesus.

Luke 6:20-21

Then he looked up at his disciples and said: 

“Blessed are you who are poor, 

for yours is the kingdom of God. 

“Blessed are you who are hungry now, 

for you will be filled. 

“Blessed are you who weep now, 

for you will laugh.”

Believe in the Resurrection

How strong is your faith? What is your faith based on? Is your faith willing to stand when criticized? Is your faith based on the resurrection of Jesus Christ? Does the promise of resurrection help you get through tough times? Or are you unsure about the resurrection?

Resurrection is a challenging topic. No one living today has witnessed a resurrection. We may believe that Jesus was resurrected. Yet, for most of us, proving it is difficult to do. We don’t have the archeological data at hand. We do have eyewitness accounts we can rely on.

We know the accounts at the end of each of the gospels and the beginning of the book of Acts. Jesus appeared to His disciples, which included the twelve apostles and several women. The Apostle Paul states that Jesus appeared to more than five hundred at one time in 1 Corinthians 15:6. Paul teaches the resurrection in many of his letters.

How did Paul know Jesus was raised from the dead? He encountered Jesus. Jesus first appeared to Paul on the road to Damascus (Acts 9). Paul spends time in Arabia before returning to Damascus (Galatians 1:17). He states in Galatians 1:12 that he was taught by Jesus Himself.

But Jesus being resurrected, and the promise of resurrection is not new in the New Testament. As we read many of the Psalms, they speak of spending eternity with God, living in his house forever. We also read in the prophecies of Isaiah of salvation and the visions of Daniel. Finally, the Revelation of John speaks to visions of the followers of Christ being with Him forever.

I pray we all believe the resurrection is real. I pray we know how to respond to questions about the resurrection. I pray each one of us know that our faith is not in vain, and we will be resurrected. Believe in the resurrection. Know that Jesus was resurrected. Believe the eyewitnesses.

1 Corinthians 15:12-14 Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say there is no resurrection of the dead? If there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation has been in vain and your faith has been in vain.

True Happiness

Do you want to be happy? Do you continually seek new ways to make yourself happy? Are you consumed with trying to be happy? Have you found that happiness does not seem to last? Would like to know why? Would you like to know a better way?

We see people try a multitude of things to make themselves happy. Some latch on to drugs or alcohol. Some become addicted to buying things. Some try to eat their way to happiness. Still others will jump from one relationship to another seeking to find happiness.

We are told where and how to find happiness at the very beginning of the book of Psalms. The first step is to no follow wicked advice. We know there are people who give bad advice. They may even do it just to see someone fail. Or they may be involved in nefarious activities and seek to lure us into them. Avoiding them contributes to our happiness.

Next, we are told to avoid hanging around with those that complain. We know people who seem to do nothing but complain about something. Rather than sitting and listening to them, get up and walk away. Their complaining will only bring us down.

True happiness comes from obeying God and following his commands and principles. We know God will not lead us astray. He will not give us bad advice. When we meditate on God’s commands and principles, our lives are better, leading to more happiness. Not only are we happier but we produce fruit—good fruit. We also will not wither in the face of hard times. Rather than buckling under pressure, we stand in God’s promises.

I pray we all seek the true happiness that comes from God. I pray we avoid the negative advice of others. I pray each one of us hold onto God’s commands, principles, and promises. Seek true happiness. Avoid complainers. Avoid bad advice. Hold onto God’s commands. Walk in God’s principles. Trust in God’s promises.

Psalm 1:1-3

Happy are those 

who do not follow the advice of the wicked, 

or take the path that sinners tread, 

or sit in the seat of scoffers; 

but their delight is in the law of the Lord, 

and on his law they meditate day and night. 

They are like trees 

planted by streams of water, 

which yield their fruit in its season, 

and their leaves do not wither. 

In all that they do, they prosper.

Blessed by Trust

Yesterday, we discussed being careful who you trust. We know that some people will let us down or betray us. When that happens, our trust is broken. We may have our doubts about trusting God. We want to believe we can trust him. Or we may fully trust God.

Through the prophet Jeremiah, God tells us why we should trust him. First, he says that we will be blessed. What does that mean? It means God blesses those who trust him. Those blessings come in many different forms. The best blessings come from his grace, mercy, and forgiveness.

God’s blessings are demonstrated by God’s description of a tree living by water. As our roots go deep into God, we will always be able to lean on him and know that he will provide. He points out that even when the heat comes, we will withstand it and will not wilt. We can interpret that as meaning when those tough times hit, and they will, our trust in God will carry us through them. We will know that God has a plan for us, and he will provide what we need.

The example goes on to state that even in drought, a time of severe testing, we will not be anxious. Our trust in God allows us to face the toughest of times without fear or anxiety. He says that we will continue to bear fruit through it all. That means that our testimony of how God is carrying us through it will have a positive impact on others.

How does this happen? Notice that God states the roots of the tree grow toward the stream. That means we send our roots toward God. How do we do that? We build our relationship with him through prayer, reading God’s Word, and experiencing him throughout our daily lives. Our experience comes even during the smallest of speedbumps, by turning it over to him. When we do, we see God working and our faith (roots) grow stronger in him.

I pray we all choose to build our relationship with God. I pray we experience God in the small things. I pray each one of us will send our roots toward God so that we trust him in all circumstances. Build your relationship with God. Experience God in your life. Put your roots in God. Trust God at all times.

Jeremiah 17:7-8

Blessed are those who trust in the Lord, 

whose trust is the Lord.

They shall be like a tree planted by water, 

sending out its roots by the stream. 

It shall not fear when heat comes, 

and its leaves shall stay green; 

in the year of drought it is not anxious, 

and it does not cease to bear fruit.

Who to Trust

Where do we put our trust? What do we trust in? Who do we trust in? Are there consequences if we put our trust in the wrong person or wrong things? We have “In God We Trust” on our money, but to we really? Or are we trusting in ourselves or someone else?

Trust can be given quickly. It can be taken away quickly. It can be challenging for us to put our trust in anyone, especially if we have been burned in the past. We may not trust our vehicle if has broken down on us before. We may no longer trust a friend who has betrayed us.

As we go through life, we will trust and stop trusting. There may be people we trust who we rarely interact with because we no longer live close to them. Those people may have played a key role in our lives at one point but now are distant. Our trust has not waned, it simply isn’t as active as it once was.

On the other hand, there may be people who we once trusted but no longer trust. Perhaps they were a close friend who turned against us. Maybe they are a parent who betrayed our trust long before we discovered their deeds of mistrust. They may be a co-worker who we confided in and ratted on us.

The prophet Jeremiah records words he received from God that tells us if we put our trust in people, we are cursed. What does that mean? Are we to never trust anyone? No. It means we are to trust God above all. If we continually trust in people over God, we will turn away from him. Think about it. Isn’t this evident in our society today? We need to put our trust in God. He needs to be who we rely on.

I pray we all are careful who we trust. I pray we put our trust in God. I pray each one of us will rely on God, knowing he is always with us, even when others desert us. Be careful who you trust. Put your trust in God. Rely on God. Know that God is always with you.

Jeremiah 17:5

Thus says the Lord: 

Cursed are those who trust in mere mortals 

and make mere flesh their strength, 

whose hearts turn away from the Lord.

Rule the World

Do you want to rule the world? Have you played the game, “If I was king/queen for a day?” What are the things you would do? How would you change the nation or the world? How do you think you would wield that power? Would it be good?

Almost everyone complains about something our community, state, or national leaders are doing. We make a case for why we would handle it differently. However, when people do obtain the power to rule, they are often changed by the power they have.

Jesus tells us that if we will hold onto Him and continue to His works, we will rule the world with Him. The good news is that He will be with us every moment and we will not allow the power of ruling to go to our head. By ruling beside Jesus, our ego is kept in check. Otherwise, we may be derailed by the infatuation with power.

The full consummation of this rule will come when Christ returns. However, we share in it preliminarily now in that we have His power to speak His truth. We have His power to bring people to Him and to His church. We have His power to carry His plan in this world today. He has already given us that.

This concept of ruling the world with Christ is not new to John, who authors Revelation. In Daniel 7, Daniel is given a vision of “one like a son of man” who comes before the “Ancient of Days”, which is God the Father, and He is given authority over all the nations. Additionally, the holy people (those who belong to Christ) will rule with Him. 

I pray we all look forward to ruling the world with Christ. I pray we know that we have power from Jesus here and now. I pray each one of us use Jesus’ power to speak His truth to expand His kingdom. Hold onto Jesus. Continue Jesus’ works. Rule the world beside Jesus.

Revelation 2:26 To everyone who conquers and continues to do my works to the end, I will give authority over the nations;