Author: Stephanie Wolfe

I hesitated naming this post Gender Reveal as I think it “cheapens” the story a bit. But, I see so many Gender Reveals these days that are so exciting. I have no idea who these people are that I am watching on Social Media, but I get wrapped up in their story and can’t wait to see if they will have a boy or a girl!! The ideas that people come up with for the Gender Reveal are unbelievable, paint guns, balloon popping, and colored cakes just to name a few. Today we read about a Gender Reveal that blows all of Social Media reveals out of the park.

The angel of the Lord appeared to her and said, “You are barren and childless, but you are going to become pregnant and give birth to a son. Now see to it that you drink no wine or other fermented drink and that you do not eat anything unclean. You will become pregnant and have a son whose head is never to be touched by a razor because the boy is to be a Nazirite, dedicated to God from the womb. He will take the lead in delivering Israel from the hands of the Philistines.”
Judges 13:3-5

I would love to see this reveal on Facebook or InstaGram, a woman walking in a field or cooking supper and an angel appearing to her to inform her that she will be having a son! The angel also tells her what her son will do, he will take the lead in delivering Israel. Can you imagine the reaction this would get? Can you imagine the excitement the woman felt after hearing this news?

We read in verse 5 that this son will be a Nazirite. A Nazirite was one who had taken a special vow before the Lord. Numbers 6 describes the commitments a Nazirite must keep during the time of his vow. A Nazirite had to commit to 3 things:

1-Not to drink wine or any intoxicating drink
2-Not to touch a dead body
3-Not to cut his hair

The purpose of this vow was to provide a way in which an ordinary person could dedicate his life to God. But, in this case of the angel appearing to this woman, this baby would be a Nazirite from birth. This obviously is going to be a special baby.

If you haven’t guessed by now, this baby to be born is Samson. God, himself, appeared to Samson’s parents, and let them know that Samson was going to be a special person, set apart for God’’s plan. God had chosen Samson to be the deliverer of His people. In Judges 13:8, Samson’s father prayed and asked that the angel would return and teach them how to be good parents and help their son be everything God wanted him to be.

Then Manoah prayed to the Lord: “Pardon your servant, Lord. I beg you to let the man of God you sent to us come again to teach us how to bring up the boy who is to be born.”
Judges 13:8

These parents wanted to do everything possible to raise Samson to be who God wanted him to be. Judges 13 ends on a positive note as God’s promise is fulfilled. The miraculous birth takes place just as God said it would. God’s blessing is on this child as he grows. God has given Samson everything he needs to succeed.

In Christ we have a promising beginning. God has given us (and our children) everything we need to succeed. God has also given us the freedom to choose. We can choose to follow God or we can choose to follow our own plans and desires. As parents, we have to privilege to trust God with our children. Manoah and his wife were godly parents who wanted to please God with how they raised their son. They did all the right things.

7 years ago, my husband and I stood on a beach in Mexico with our children and recommitted our marriage vows to one another. We wrote down our own words and said them to each other. This was not a formal ceremony, no pastor or special person, except our children to hear that we would continue to love and honor each other. I have to admit, I thought my husband did a much better job at coming up with the words to honor me than I did. But, I know that it was the act of recommitting our covenant 20 years after our original vows that was the important aspect.

This marriage renewal was a special occasion for us, it didn’t make us more married or more in love with each other. There was no “legal” person there to witness the event, but it served a very useful purpose in our lives.

Today in our reading of Deuteronomy 26, the people were remembering that they had committed to follow the Lord.

The Lord your God commands you this day to follow these decrees and laws; carefully observe them with all your heart and soul. You have declared this day that the Lord is your God and that you will walk in obedience to him, that you will keep his decrees, commands and laws-that you will listen to him.
Deuteronomy 26:16-17

The people were proclaiming this covenant before entering the land. This renewal of vows reminds us of something important that we have committed to doing. The people were remembering they had made a commitment to follow the Lord.

It is easy in the busy daily life to forget the importance of the day we committed to follow Jesus. Maybe it was a few months ago, a year ago, or more than 30 years ago, but it is good to remember the day we decided to follow the Lord. Think back today on the day you gave your life to Jesus. Remember the commitment you made and the joy that filled your heart. Everyday we have the opportunity to ask for forgiveness and surrender to Jesus again.  Maybe take a moment today to recomit your life to Jesus, to walk with Him.

This past June I set a goal to begin walking. After healing from a broken ankle last fall, I started at ground zero! The best part of my new habit is that I did not have to do it alone! My Mom and my sister joined me almost everyday. Although the walking definitely has helped with my general fitness level, I have increased my distance from 1.5 to now 3 miles a day, what I enjoyed most was the time spent with my Mom and sister. We walked close together on the trail. We were not silent on our walks, rather we talked most of the time. We communicated so many things that would not have been discussed had we not chosen to walk together this summer.

We read about walking with God in Deuteronomy 10.

And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to observe the Lord’s commands and decrees that I am giving you today for your own good?
Deuteronomy 10:12-13

In these two verses above, God is giving Israel the basic things that He requires of them. These are also the same things that God is requiring of us today.

He calls us to:
1 – Fear Him
2 – Walk in obedience
3 – Love Him
4 – Serve Him with all our heart and soul
5 – Observe His commands

Fearing God does not mean that we are to be afraid of Him. Fearing God means having such a reverence for Him that it has a great impact on the way we live our lives. When we fear God, we respect Him, obey Him, submit to Him, and worship Him.

Just as I walked closely and communicated with my Mom and sister this summer, we are called to walk close to God. Walking is an action. We are called to take action and do the things that we know that God wants us to do. Walking in step with God throughout the day keeps us connected to Him and following His lead.

A few days ago I wrote in our Bible Journal about the Pharisees and Sadducees wanting to see a sign from Jesus that He was who He said He was. They believed the sky could predict the weather, but they doubted that Jesus was really the Messiah. Sometimes we are the same. We just want a physical sign that God is real and among us.

In today’s reading Exodus 40, we see the physical sign that God provided to the Israelites. In this final chapter of Exodus, Moses and the Israelites are putting the finishing touches on the tabernacle. It is like when you move and finally have the boxes unloaded and everything organized. You can finally decide where that special decoration, plant, or pillow fit best. Moses had direct instructions on where to place every item in the tent. Once everything was in its place a cloud covered the tent of meeting.

Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. Moses could not enter the tent of meeting because the cloud had settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.
Exodus 40:34-35

The cloud was a visible sign that God was with them. The cloud was the presence of God in their midst. The cloud would tell the Israelites when to move and when to stay put.

In all the travels of the Israelites, whenever the cloud lifted from above the tabernacle, they would se out; but if the club did not lift, they did not set out=until the day it lifted. So the cloud of the Lord was over the tabernacle by day, and fire was in the cloud by night, in the sight of all the Israelites during all their travels.
Exodus 40:36-38

Sometimes I would like to see a physical manifestation of God. Can you imagine seeing an actual fire in a cloud? The news stations would be all over that! But, if we constantly had visible signs of God we would not need faith. We have to look for signs of God in our daily life.

Where do we see Him show up in our experiences?
Where do we see Him show up in our daily interactions with others?            Where do we see Him show up in our Bible reading?
And where do we see Him show up in our worship.
We have to be looking and expecting Him to show up.

We now have the presence of the Holy Spirit. Through the Holy Spirit is now how we experience the glory of God. We have to be looking for the Holy Spirit to show up. God’s presence is always with us, will you look for Him today?

Growing up I had the opportunity to do some sailing. My dad had a love for sailing and many of our family vacations involved sailing for a week at a time. I have so many memories of being in a very small space with all 5 of us living on a 30 foot sailboat. One memory that popped to mind when I read through my assigned text for today was what my Dad would say every night as the sun was setting on the water…

“Red sky at night, sailor’s delight. Red sky in the morning, sailor’s warning.”

This is a saying that is actually rooted in today’s reading, Matthew 16:1-12. Jesus actually references the above saying…

He replied, “When evening comes, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,’ and in the morning,’Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times.
Matthew 16:2-3

The people of Jesus’s day knew how to read the skies, they believed that the color of the sky would predict the weather. But Jesus points out here that even though they believed in the color of the sky predicting the weather, they couldn’t read the signs of the times.

The Pharisees and Sadducees asked Jesus for a sign from heaven. Jesus had been performing miracles and signs for days. He had just fed thousands of people with a few loaves of bread and a few fish. Even if the Pharisees and Sadducees were not present to witness Jesus’ miracles, surely they had heard of them. They were “testing” Jesus. He calls them “hypocrites” as they can discern the sky and predict the weather, but they cannot observe the signs of the times.

A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah.” Jesus then left them and went away.
Matthew 16:4

What does it mean to discern the signs of the times? Do we notice what is going on around us? Do we see people turning to Jesus or drifting away? Jesus tells them that they will only be given the sign of Jonah. Jesus saw Jonah as a symbol of the Messiah whom He himself claimed to be. In Matthew 12:38-40 he explains how Jonah is a sign.

He answered, “A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a sign! But none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
Matthew 12:38-40

Jesus is referring to his coming death and resurrection. Are we like the Pharisees and Sadducees and putting Jesus to the test? Or do we believe what He says and the miracles He performed? He gives us the choice. We have a choice to follow Him and survive the storms of life, because we know that the red sky in the morning may bring severe storms.  Jesus rose from the dead after 3 days so that we may have life and have it abundantly.

 

Faith – Hope – Love
We have probably heard many lessons about having faith, hope and love. They are very important to the Christian journey. In our reading today, 1 Thessalonians, Paul gives us great insight on how faith, hope and love all work together to help us press on in our walk with Jesus.

For we remember before our God and Father how you put your faith into practice, how your love motivates you to serve others, and how unrelenting is your hope-filled patience in our Lord Jesus Christ.
1 Thessalonians 1:3

Paul is writing to the young church at Thessalonica. In this verse Paul makes three distinctions:
1)  how to put your faith into practice
2)  how love motivates you to serve and
3)  how unrelenting is your hope-filled patience.

The first distinction that Paul makes is how to put your faith into practice. Where you put your faith determines what you do. If God is the focus of your life than that will show in what we do with your time.

The second connection that Paul makes is how love motivates us to serve. How much do you love Jesus? Love is what motivates us in the direction of our faith. If we truly love Jesus than that motivates us to serve Him through serving others.

The third point that Paul makes is how unrelenting is your hope-filled patience. According to Merriam-Webster, unrelenting means 1-“not softening or yielding in determination: hard, stern and 2- not letting up or weakening in vigor or pase: constant.”  This refers to how we are to live out our life. We have to push on with endurance to the end, even in the most difficult times. How do you continue to push on when life is hard? Paul tells us that it is through hope.

The word hope in the Bible means a “joyful and confident expectation”. What we hope for is what we expect to happen. You have to have the right kind of hope to endure hard things. Hope is what keeps us going when the going gets tough.

Paul gives the church at Thessolonica a commendation of these three things. He praises them for putting their faith into practice, for letting their love motivate them to serve, and for having unrelenting hope-filled patience.

Could Paul give that same praise to you and I? Do I put my faith into practice daily? Do I let my love for Jesus motivate me to serve those around me? And, do I have unrelenting hope-filled patience as I endure daily hardships?

I must daily be in God’s Word to renew my mind and deepen my love for Him. My love for Him is what will motivate me to keep my faith, hope and love at the center of my life.

On July 12, 2022 we got to witness the first ever color scientific images and spectra from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope. The image (above) reveals for the first time previously invisible areas of star birth. It shows landscape of “mountains” and “valleys” speckled with glittering stars from a nearby star-forming region called NGC 3325 in the Carina Nebula (NASA news, July 12, 2022).

I am not an avid star watcher, although I have used the app on my phone to do some star-gazing. It is amazing what technology can find and discover these days. Back in the days of the Bible stars were used for navigation. The movements and patterns of the stars showed direction. When people travelled they studied and watched the stars carefully to find their way.

In our reading today, Philippians 2, Paul tells the Philippians to “shine like stars.”

Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky

Philippians 2:14-15

The phrase “shine like stars” is more accurately translated as “appearing as luminaries.” Paul wanted the Philippians to be luminaries or light-bearers in the world and be a witness for Jesus Christ.

If Paul thought the world of his time was “crooked and twisted”, how much more is our world “crooked and twisted” today? Every time I turn on the news I am reminded just how dark our world is. The light of Christ can shine brightly through us to all the world.

We can be a light by obeying the words of Paul, “do everything without grumbling or arguing.” It is so easy to find something to complain or argue about these days, but God asks us to simply not do it. This is such a good reminder as I catch myself complaining about how hot it is today.

If we know Jesus, we are called to live differently than worldly people around us. We are called to be a light to those around us. Do people around you notice something different in us through our actions? Our light can lead other people to Jesus.

The James Webb telescope is so powerful it can see stars that have never been seen before. God calls us to “shine like stars” in the midst of the dark world we live in.

How has your day been? Your week? Your month? Odds are that you have faced a trial or two. Maybe it was a quick argument or a small fender-bender. Or, maybe you or someone you love is facing a difficult health or personal circumstances. The reality is, this is life. Life is hard. No where will we find a promise that our life is supposed to be easy. In fact, we read in God’s Word that we will have trouble.

“I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”
John 16:33

As we go through these troubles in our life, it is easy to lose focus. The enemy wants nothing more than to get in our thoughts and feelings and tell us lies about what we are experiencing. The enemy is waiting for any moment that he can jump in on our struggles. He makes us think that we haven’t handled a situation right, that we are not good enough, that we could have done more. He never stops whispering in our ear that we are never going to measure up.

But!!!! If we know Jesus, we are none of the lies that the enemy wants us to believe about ourselves.

In our reading today, Ephesians 1, Paul reminds the church of Ephesus, and us, who we are in Christ.

All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. So we praise God for the glorious grace he has Poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins.
Ephesians 1:3-7

Did you read that and realize that we already have everything we need through Christ. I find that when I make scripture personal I relate to it on a different level. Do this. Read the above verses again and exchange the underlined word with your name, I, and me. This is written for you. When you insert your name, you really understand what God has done for you!

God has blessed you with every spiritual blessing.
You are Holy and without fault in the eyes of God .
You are adopted as His child.
You are beloved and accepted by his son Jesus.
In Jesus, you are redeemed and your sins are forgiven!

We are not defined by the thoughts that drift into our mind from the enemy. We are not defined by how we are handling a certain situation or by our past.

We are defined by God. Our identity in Chris is our true worth. It is easy to get wrapped up in our circumstances, especially when they are hard. Take a moment to read the scripture above and remember who you truly are… A child of the one true God!

Do you think Abraham realized when he was living, approximately 4000 years ago, that he would leave a legacy of faith? We have the opportunity to pick up our Bible and read all about his faith and how he lived it out. Because he had faith, we get to learn from him and have our faith strengthened.

Hebrews 11:1-21 covers the stories of some of the best faith keepers in the Old Testament. When we read the stories of these faithful people we get to see faith in action and learn what real faith is.

Here is a list of the faith keepers in our reading today:
*Abel
*Enoch
*Noah
*Abraham
*Issac
*Jacob
*Sarah

So, what is faith?

Faith is responsive. All of the faith keepers above obeyed what God told them to do. Abraham for instance left all that he had, not knowing even where he was going.

Faith is persistent. None of the above faith keepers ever gave up. They exercised their faith knowing that God would be true to his word.

Faith is dependent. “For without faith it is impossible to please God.” (Hebrews 11:6) All of these faith keepers were dependent on God to see them through their days. Their hard days, the days they struggled, and especially on the days they wanted to give up.

These faith keepers were commended by God for keeping their faith.  According to Dictionary.com, the word commended means 1) to present, mention, or praise as worthy of confidence, notice, kindness, etc,:  recommend 2) to entrust; give in charge; deliver with confidence and 3) to cite or name with approval or special praise.

But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city.
Hebrews 11:16

I long for the commendation of God. Just as we read he gave to the faith keepers (Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Issac, Jacob, and Sarah), this same promise is made to us if we keep our faith focused on God. To receive the praise of God we must keep the faith. We must be responsive, persistent and dependent to God.

Oh how I remember the times I had to discipline my children because of a wrong they did. If you are a parent you honestly understand that it sometimes hurts us more than it does the child who did wrong. My children are now young adults so it is very rare that  I have to do any correcting, but now they face their own consequences of sin. Just as I face my consequences for sins in my own life.

Sin has consequences and causes trouble in our lives. God’s response to sin is like a parent’s response to a misbehaving child. God loves us more than a parent loves a child. God hates sin because when we choose it, it separates us from Him and destroys what is good in our lives.

I will discipline you, but with justice; I cannot let you go unpunished.
Jeremiah 30:11

We read in Jeremiah chapter 30 of the people of Israel. They were broken and hopeless because they insisted on doing things there own way. But thankfully, that is not the end of the story.

God loves us way too much to let us stay separated from Him. He corrects us, just as a parent corrects a child. The discipline causes us to grow because, through it we learn to trust God and not ourselves.

I am so thankful that we have Jesus. He paid the price for our sins so we can be reunited with God. Durning the time of Jeremiah, the Israelites had no idea the Jesus was coming to pay the price.

Thank You God for loving us so much and sending your son to die for us.