Tag: saved

One Name

Today’s reading is Psalm 54.

In whom or in what do you trust? In whom or what do you put your faith and hope in?

Last year brought us arguably the most hyper partisan election in U.S. history with each side claiming the other would end democracy as we know if the other won. With the election result nearly a 50/50 split, half the country was really happy with the outcome and half the country was really disappointed.  Unfortunately, most who voted looked at their candidate to solve our country’s problems and also many to fix their own problems and to rescue them so to speak.

If you did not put your hope and trust in one of these leaders, or even if you did, we can likely find ourselves putting our hope or trust in other political figures, leaders, athletes, or celebrities. We can also find ourselves putting our hope and trust in our careers, money or belongings, or even our spouses, parents, or children looking to them to solve our problems. Sadly, most of us we form our identity or measure our self-worth based on our career, our money or belongings, or relationships. The problem is we end up finding out politicians do not solve all our problems, careers end unexpectedly or due to retirement, money does not bring happiness and can run out no matter the amount, and relationships can end due to death or falter no matter how good of a job we do to nourish them because we are all sinful humans who make mistakes. All these things are futile and end.

As I read Psalm 54, what kept coming to my mind was….one name.

“God save me by your name

and vindicate me by your might.”

Psalm 54:1

Life is short..even if we live 90 to 100 years. There is only one thing we should really fear and that is death. There is only one name that can save us from death and give us eternal life through His sacrifice on the cross. In only Him should we put our hope and trust.

“It is better to take refuge in the

Lord

than to trust in man.

It is better to take refuge in the

Lord

than to trust in princes.”

Psalm 118:8-9

Ross Blumhorst wrote in a Bible Journal post back in January, “God is always right, we never have to guess if He is right or wrong, and you that makes me rejoice-how thankful I am that there’s something in this crazy world I can always know to be true!” Wow..powerful words that are so true. Thank you, Ross. I posted this quote to my social media and my Mom reminded me of this great verse.

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”
Hebrews 13:8

Thanks, Mom. How great it is to know this in our messed up world?!

Earlier I asked the questions, in whom or in what do you trust? In whom do you put your faith and hope in?

We should strive to constantly remember the words of David here in Psalm 54.

“Behold, God is my helper;

the Lord is the upholder of my

life. “
Psalm 54:4

“For He has delivered me from

every trouble…”

Psalm 54:7

Let us then respond as David does…

“..I will give thank to your

Name O Lord, for it is

good.”

Psalm 54:6

By only one name are we saved. Only one name should we call on and put our faith, hope, and trust in. By only one name should we form our identity. And only in one name should we give our thanks, glory, and praise. That name is Jesus.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ypXUd_vGmI

 

 

Good, Good Father

Today’s reading is Matthew 20 and Psalm 93.

As we read Matthew 20:1-16 about the laborers who worked in the vineyard and were paid the same wage regardless whether they started working at the beginning or the end of the day, I have a feeling of great gratitude. I’m thankful were serve a great God who doesn’t care what we’ve done and when we give our life to him, but only that we give our life to Him.

As I ponder this in amazement, I can’t help but wonder why he is so loving and gracious? For all parents reading this, think of a time when your young children had a really bad day and you were at your wit’s end. As bedtime nears you are not sure if you can take any more of it and if they are like our kids there must be caffeine in the bathwater because they become even more rambunctious and listening goes out the window during and after bath. You then tuck them into bed to say good night, and they say in the sweetest little voice, “Daddy/Mommy…I love you.” Your heart then instantly melts. You forget the recent scolding and headaches they just caused you, and you realize deep down your love for them is unconditional. Why? Well, I believe it is because they are yours and you created them. Check out Matthew 20:15. The vineyard owner says, “Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me?” God is telling us we belong to Him. He is our Heavenly Father and our one and true Creator. When you or others can’t imagine how God can forgive many past sins and potentially nearly a lifetime of separation from Him in some cases, we need reminded that we are His and He created us so His love is unconditional forgetting past mistakes. He only wants us to come back like the prodigal son in Luke 15:11-32. As a side note, this why the role of an earthly father is so important, God created us to model His love so that our kids can see it through us.

This week in our church we studied Joshua 2 where Rahab, a prostitute, helped the Israelite spies entering Jericho, even though she was a pagan and lived a life even pagans would believe to be wrong. We learn in Matthew 1:5 that she later became part of the lineage of Jesus! Talk about a redemption story! The Bible is truly full of them with this being just one example. Our Pastor Mike Baker said, “You can never get so far from Jesus that He can’t save you.” I would also add that you can never get so far from Jesus that He can’t use you for something positive and big. Outsiders become insiders through Jesus, and we are all outsiders to God through our sin …even Christians(Romans 3:23). Pastor Mike said, “Jesus came for outsiders like Rahab and all of us.”

I can’t help but think of the lyrics to the song, “Good, Good Father.” The lyrics not only say, “You’re a good, good Father, it’s who you are.” The lyrics also say, “I’m loved by you, it’s who I am.” Isn’t that awesome? You may feel like a failure. Maybe you have a failed marriage or relationship, troubled kids who make you feel like a poor parent, professional shortcomings, financial challenges or even a fallout in relationship with your siblings or earthly parents whose love and approval you deeply yearn for. There is no question these situations are hard and painful. Thankfully, these lyrics are so true though as the Scriptures remind us countless times. He created us and not only is He good, but only Him and His love matters. This is who we are. His love, and His love only, defines us. His love is unconditional. Praise God!

As we read Matthew 20, we can also likely think of a family member or friend who is a non-believer, and we are reminded it’s not too late, no matter how old they are, and no matter how many times we have witnessed to them and feel like we’ve been unsuccessful. If they are still on this Earth, they can still be saved. Through these Scriptures today, God laid on my heart an elderly man with failing health who both my Dad and I have witnessed to. This man has done so much good in his life and is a wonderful person, but know John 14:6 to be the truth. These scriptures gave me hope for him and reminded me it’s not too late. He can still be saved! I must not give up. I must continue to pray for him and speak with him again.

I pray this has touched you in some way. Maybe you can relate to Rahab and this reminded you that you can be used for God’s purpose still and only His love defines you, or maybe it re-invigorated you to pray for and witness to a non-believer you know who can still be saved. Either way, we can all be very thankful we have a “Good, Good Father.”

The Tornado Effect

Life is uncertain. Some would say it’s a gift from God. And the closer I got to God, the more often unusual things seemed to happen. These statistical anomalies were also happening with greater frequency in the lives of other believers I knew.

I have come to believe that the kingdom of God is a real thing. It exists in the heavens and also in our midst, hidden from those who don’t have the “eyes to see” or “ears to hear.”  Each day it was revealed, and for some it became a new reality. Others glimpsed it’s truth, discovered its power and felt it’s JOY, only to have it snatched away, as Jesus shared in the parable of the sower.

Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in their heart. This is the seed sown along the path. The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. -Matthew 13:18-21

About six weeks ago, we started having our twenty five year old home remodeled. Rooms were painted; new flooring put down; a new roof; and a new furnace and air conditioner. Despite the blessing of being able to repair and replace old failing systems and tired finishes, after a while, the process was starting to add stress to our lives. Furniture was piled up in a several rooms, making them unusable. The ones that were being worked on were also unusable, while dust settled everywhere, day in and day out. As the days turned into weeks, this chaos was increasingly hard to take. And while we knew this wasn’t a horrible problem, it was still frustrating. I needed the contractor to try to wrap things up, so Thursday morning I called.

“Jeff, I appreciate all the great work you guys have done, but we really need you to finish today if possible. Perhaps you don’t know what it’s like to have your house turned upside down!”

“I understand, but we’re probably not coming today. Did you hear about the tornado that touched down in Pontiac last night? Well it destroyed Danny’s home.”

It turns out that the trailer belonging to Jeff’s niece Rachel, and Danny (one of his assistants), was turned upside down (three times) and destroyed. Jeff and his other helper were going there today to help see what might be salvaged.”

“That’s crazy! Was anyone hurt?” I asked, not sure what to think.

He calmly shared the story, “Danny took his six year old son to get a blanket to put over Rachel, who was in the bathtub protecting their two year old, when tornado hit. They’re at the hospital now. Her pelvis is shattered and he broke or bruised a bunch of ribs and was cut up pretty bad. Fortunatly the kids are both fine, though a bit terrorized.”

“Wow” was all I could say. When I shared this story with my wife, she felt terrible too, not only for this young family, but because we had been impatient about the condition of our home. It had taken a near tragedy to re-gain a better perspective! And it was also in God’s grace, that Danny, as he lay in a field surrounded by the debris that was once his home, looking up at the stars in the heavens, saw his life in a new way.

“I haven’t been to church for a long time. I’m going now!” He told me the following Monday.

Amazingly, Danny and I shared transformation and gratitude in his tragedy, both in the grace of my God who was always calling, always teaching, and always present.

Heavenly Father, thank you for Danny and his family! Please grant us the strength and the power to put you above all other things in our lives. In the mighty name of Jesus. Amen.

Joshua 5–6:5; Psalms 132–134; Isaiah 65; Matthew 13