It Is Well

Reading for today: Matthew 8:23-27

Jesus Calms the Storm by Laura James

One of the most difficult times for my family was the recent death of my mother-in-law, Cheryl. She died just a few years ago of a progressive cancer called multiple myeloma. The time between a proper diagnosis of her disease and her final breath was about 56 days.

Raging winds, crashing waves, and a swamped boat. Cheryl’s struggle with cancer was a massive storm for our family.

When you or your loved ones are in the middle of a powerful storm, that storm will begin to make you feel as though God is no longer in control, even if you are a seasoned Christian.

In our reading for today, the disciples knew firsthand, as seasoned fishermen, the destructive power of a great storm. Their fear tells us how bad the storm they faced really was.

Yet, even more powerful than the storm, was the voice of Jesus as he stood and rebuked the wind and the waves. The moment he spoke, the storm disappeared and was replaced by a “great calm” (v.26).

While it may not always seem as though God is in control, always remember and be comforted that the winds and the waves must obey Him.

Although God did not stop the storm inside Cheryl’s body, God calls me to trust in His sovereignty and in His timing. He calls me to faith and He reminds me that I have nothing to fear because He is in control.

Dear God, the storm I face right now is ___________________. Please speak truth into my life. If it is Your will, please rebuke this storm. If it is not Your will, give me the faith to trust in Your sovereignty and take away my fear. In Your name, I pray. Amen.

During that agonizing and confusing time of Cheryl’s death, our church music team in St. Louis performed a song one Sunday morning entitled “It Is Well” (Bethel Music). One particular line of the song is: “So let it go my soul and trust in Him. The waves and wind still know His name.” God used this song to speak His comfort into my soul. Click on the link below to use this song as a prayer.

Bethel Music “It Is Well”

This week we will read one more account of Jesus literally calming a storm. We will also read through a few comforting Psalms.

Day 2 – Mark 6:45-51

Day 3 – Psalm 46

Day 4 – Psalm 89:8-9

Day 5 – Psalm 62

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Something for Nothing: Lent Series – Week 4

Reading for this week: Matthew 14:13-21

Jesus and his disciples had retreated quietly to a “desolate place.” A massive crowd of people (5,000 men plus women and children) followed them. Instead of finding another quiet place, Jesus had compassion on the people and spent the rest of the day healing them.

At the end of the day the disciples saw that the people were hungry. They said to Jesus, “This is a desolate place, and the day is over; send the crowds away to go into the villages and buy food for themselves”  (Matthew 14:15). But Jesus responded, “You give them something to eat” (v. 16).

What? We have nothing. Only five loaves of bread and two fish.

But Jesus took the loaves and the fish and asked the disciples to have the people sit down. He lifted his eyes towards heaven, gave thanks, and distributed the food among the people. And distributed. And distributed. And distributed. Until everyone had eaten to their full. Then he had the disciples gather the leftovers, twelve extra basketfuls.

Jesus could have taken the disciples advice and sent the people away, exhausted and tired and hungry. Although it was late and they were away from any villages, they could have probably found something to eat, for themselves.

But Jesus had bigger plans. He wanted to show them how God can provide for his people out of nothing. He wanted them to see first hand what God can do when you obediently give him what you have.

 Dear God, You are the source of everything we need. Thank you. Give us your resources so that we may feed not only ourselves, but others as well. Amen.

The feeding of the 5,000 is one of my favorite Bible stories, because God takes our practically nothing and multiplies it into more than enough. This week, let’s spend time studying this story.

Day 2 – Mark 6:32-44

Day 3 – Luke 9:10-17

Day 4 – John 6:1-13

Day 5 – John 6:22-35

 

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Something for Nothing: Lent Series – Week 2

For these weeks leading up to Easter, we are studying how God works miracles out of nothing.

Reading for this week: Hebrews 11:8-11

“Is anything too hard for the Lord?” ~Genesis 18:14

Out of an unbelieving family, God called Abraham to be the father of all believers. Out of the old, barren womb of Abraham’s wife, Sarah, God promised a child. Out of nothing came generations, nations, kings, and blessings upon blessings.

Even though God promised to work a miracle through Abraham and Sarah, they laughed because they believed what God had promised was impossible. But their laughter was not from joy. It was from cynicism and doubt.

Abraham laughed and said, “Shall a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old?” Sarah also laughed and asked, “After I am worn out, and my lord is old, shall I have pleasure [in a child]?”

Retrieved from – http://dohlesdevos.blogspot.com/

But God replied to their laughter with his own laughter, “Is anything too hard for the Lord?”

God forgave their mistakes, he worked through their limited understanding, and he brought forth a son from the empty womb of Sarah.

As she looked in amazement at the baby boy in her arms, she said, “God has made laughter for me.”

Praise God that when he chooses to work his greatest miracles, he does not require our understanding. He can work through our cynicism and doubt. And in his mercy, he can bring joyful laughter into a life that otherwise had nothing.

Dear God, I am able to do nothing, yet you have chosen to work through me, even when I get in the way or stumble. Thank you for your forgiveness and steadfast love. Amen.

God called forth a nation out of an empty womb. From that nation would come a Savior for all nations. Let’s read about Abraham and Sarah’s story this week.

Day 2 – Genesis 12:1-4; Genesis 15:1-6

Day 3 – Genesis 16:1-3; 15-16

Day 4 – Genesis 17:15-21

Day 5 – Genesis 18:9-14; Genesis 21:1-7

 

 

 

 

 

 

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“Hey! You Withheld My Miracle”: 3 Studies on God’s Timing – Part 2

“Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” John 11:21, 32

God’s timing is always good. It is always perfect. But the circumstances we find ourselves in are not always good and are never perfect.

The Raising of Lazarus by John Reilly

Reading for today: John 11:1-46

It was completely within your power to save my brother and you let him die. I asked you for a miracle and you withheld it from me. Why? We have poured our lives into you and your ministry. I thought we were friends. I thought you loved us. You said, “Everyone who asks, receives” (Luke 11:10). We asked for you to come, we asked for a miracle, but you were purposefully late! And now my brother is dead. I am so hurt and confused. I don’t know if I can trust you anymore.

Faith in God is tricky. When we believe, it’s not a matter of whether or not He exists. It’s a matter of knowing He exists, knowing He loves us, but feeling confused and hurt when His timing seems off. In other words, if God is so good, if God promises to hear us, then why isn’t He being good to me right now? Why isn’t He responding?

But God is responding. In His goodness, God’s response to our confusion and hurt is the same as Jesus’s response to Mary and Martha and the mourners. First, He hears us and is moved to compassion toward us. Second, He feels our hurt. But third, He challenges us to trust His sovereignty. Jesus said, Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God? (John 11:40).

We believe God is able to work a miracle, but do we trust His timing? Do we trust His sovereignty? That is our lifetime challenge: To believe, even when we disagree. To trust, even when we are confused and hurt. And to know that He loves us and our answers are being worked out in His timing and for His glory.

Dear God, We believe! Help our unbelief. Grow our trust. But please, in your mercy, show us your perfect will. Show us your glory. Amen.

This week as you spend time in prayer asking God for clarity or for a miracle, also spend time thanking God for the answer that He is preparing for you in His perfect timing.

Day 2 – Luke 11:9-13

Day 3 – Psalm 40:1-3; Psalm 69:13-17

Day 4 – Psalm 103

Day 5 – Isaiah 40:27-31

 

 

 

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Hey! You Stole My Miracle: 3 Lessons on God’s Timing – Lesson 1

Read for today: Luke 8:40-56

“Your daughter is dead; do not trouble the teacher any more.” Luke 8:49

 

Lesson 1: God’s timing is never too late.

Jairus knew Jesus could heal his dying daughter. If he could find Jesus, then there might be a chance.

As if God had heard his desperate prayer, there was Jesus! Pushing through the crowd, Jairus threw himself at Jesus’s feet. Please come, heal my daughter. Desperation gave way to hope as Jairus led Jesus through the masses. Oh God, let us make it in time.

And then, out of nowhere, Jesus stopped. He began to search the crowd for something or someone else. Who touched me? Jesus asked. Nobody responded. Jesus continued to wait, looking around. Precious time ticked by.

There are hundreds of people all around, why are you stopping to ask “who touched me?” Then a woman stepped out of the crowd, revealing that she had touched Jesus and because of it, was healed from a twelve-year-old disease.

Twelve-year-old. The age of Jairus’s daughter. The daughter who also needed Jesus to touch her with his healing powers. But now it was too late. Men from Jairus’s house came and said, Your daughter is dead. Don’t trouble the teacher any more. It’s over. This hemorrhaging woman had stolen Jairus’s miracle! While Jesus had stood there commending her on her faith, Jairus’s daughter had died. Her life was over. They were too late.

But God’s timing is never too late. In fact, it is perfect every time. However, our response to His perfect timing is usually one of four reactions: fear (as in Jairus), annoyance (as in the disciples), cynicism (as in Jairus’s household), or faith (as in the hemorrhaging woman).

God’s timing is about getting us to that place of faith. His seeming delay afforded one woman another chance in life, healing her body and strengthening her faith. To a scared family, their cynical household, and a frustrated group of disciples who all wanted a healing, God’s timing allowed for a bigger miracle: a resurrection.

As you go through this week, what are you waiting on God for? Instead of responding with worry or fear or frustration, ask God to give you faith. Remember, God loves you and He has a plan for you. He will bless you abundantly and make you a blessing to others. Trust His way. Trust His timing.

Dear God, It is so hard to wait for you. Make me fearless and give me the strength to believe that you have everything perfectly timed. Amen.

This week read about the blessings of waiting on God’s timing.

Day 2 – Jeremiah 29:11-12; Psalm 27:14

Day 3 – Romans 8:28-32

Day 4 – Isaiah 30:18; Lamentations 3:22-26

Day 5 – Psalm 130

 

 

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Steps to contentment: Step 4 – Center

Welcome to week 4 in our study on contentment. Contentment in the biblical sense is peace with God and satisfaction in the circumstances where God has placed you.

Read Genesis 2:8-9, 15-17; 3:1-24 and Matthew 26:36-42

There were two gardens. In the first garden, everything was perfect. God had planted the garden. The plants were lush and filled with fruit. In the center of the garden grew the tree of life. A couple lived there. They trusted God and were content and satisfied, having everything they needed.

The second garden, on the other hand, was dark and dangerous. Although familiar, it was not a happy place that night. In the center of this garden a distressed man lay praying fervently for help to the God he, too, trusted. This isn’t what I want to do. This doesn’t feel good to me. I am not happy about this. Please, please take it away, Lord. He had found himself in that garden because he had come to restore the tree of life that had been lost to the couple in the first garden.

You see, they had stepped out of the master Gardner’s will. And as a horrible consequence, their rebellion brought sin, death, and sadness into a once perfect garden. Ever since that fateful day, we have been chasing down the peace and contentment that was lost.

But God did not abandon that first couple or us. He promised a Savior. One who would become for us the new tree of life.

In the midst of this unhappy, imperfect garden, a sorrowful Jesus taught us one of the most important steps in our path toward contentment. He finished his earnest prayer by saying, Not my will, but Yours be done. Jesus stood in that dark, scary garden and centered himself on God’s will. He completely trusted God. Even though it meant taking on all the sin, all the death, and all the sadness of this world.

Contentment has never really been about our happiness, our comfortableness, or our desires being fulfilled. Contentment is simply about being in the center of God’s will.

The only time we should feel discontent, is when we are in a situation that is pulling us away from God’s will. And in those dark moments, cry out to God, like Jesus did in the garden. And then remember that Jesus is for us the new tree of life at the very center of God’s garden. Center your garden on Him.

Step 4 in the pursuit of contentment: Center your garden on God’s will.

Dear Lord, Let Your will be done always and bring me into the center of Your will. Make me content. Amen.

This week, let’s read about what it looks like to center yourself on God’s will.

Day 2 – 1 John 2:16-17; Matthew 6:10

Day 3 – Proverbs 3:5-6; James 1:5

Day 4 – John 10:7-11; Hebrews 13:20-21

Day 5 –  1 Timothy 2:4-6; Proverbs 13:12; Revelation 22:14

Next week we will conclude our study on contentment by talking about the harvest!

 

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Steps to contentment: Step 2 – Protect

Welcome to week 2 in our study on contentment. Contentment in the biblical sense is peace with God and satisfaction in the circumstances where God has placed you.

Contentment is what we want, but we cannot have contentment without faith. If contentment is that lush, green, fruitful garden, then discontentment is anything that endangers the growth of the garden.

Reading for this week: Luke 10:38-42

Over the summer, the kids and I weeded our overgrown yard for about 20 minutes a day. Even though 20 minutes doesn’t clear much, I have noticed that over time, we have slowly begun to open up the landscape to allow for my husband’s green-thumb creativity. It’s as if the yard finally has some room to breathe.

However, a new problem has made an appearance. Deer. They walk around the yard like they own it, eating anything that looks good. My superbells are chewed down; my new pineberries (a strawberry cultivar that tastes like pineapple) look like thick blades of sporadic grass. As we continue to develop our garden, we now have to research deer resistant plants and build deer fencing around our new vegetable garden. We need to protect what’s growing.

Being content is also a constant battle for turf. The story for today is one of our first encounters with Mary and Martha, two friends of Jesus. Both women are serving Jesus in the story. One is sitting and listening. The other is prepping a meal. I can relate to both women. However, I struggle with this passage because Martha’s service gets a bad rap. When Jesus denies Martha’s plea for help in the kitchen, it seems unfair. My gut response is to say, “Do you know what it takes to serve 13 plus hungry men? Good luck feeding those guys.”

 

Painting by He Qi

There are two problems with Martha’s service, though. The first, Luke says, “Martha was distracted.” And the second, Jesus says, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion and it will not be taken from her.” I love the firmness of Jesus’s response. It will not be taken from her. He is protecting Mary. But he is also protecting Martha from the dangerous assumption that service to God is more important than time with God.

Contentment is only possible with time with God. You can work and work and work in your garden, but if you haven’t spent time protecting it, if you haven’t spent time with the Master Gardener, you will never experience your garden of contentment.

In your pursuit of contentment, you need that valuable time with Him. And that time needs to be protected. Protected from distraction. Protected from worry. Protected from anxiety. And even protected from service. The kind of service that distracts from the very One who is to be served.

Step 2 in the pursuit of contentment: Protect your garden by spending time with the Master Gardener.

Dear Lord, I forget to spend time with You. Please forgive me. Never let my service to You replace spending time with You. Help me to encourage others to spend time with You. Grow my garden of contentment. Amen.

This week, let’s read about the blessings of spending time with God. As you read Day 2 – Psalm 23, take confidence in the fact that when the Lord is your shepherd, when you focus on Him, you realize that you have everything you need. And when you know you have everything you need, that is the beginning of contentment.

Day 2 – Psalm 23

Day 3 – Psalm 37:3-7

Day 4 – Ephesians 3:14-21

Day 5 – Matthew 6:19-21; 25-33

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Face the Sunshine

I thought I would share this post from four years ago as encouragement for this week.

 

Originally posted on 5/23/2012 my blog, http://801seminaryplace.wordpress.com

The last few international women’s Bible studies that I led were about understanding what Christians mean by faith or belief. The last two stories we studied were about the healing of a demon possessed boy and the resurrection of Lazarus. Both stories illustrate not only the amazing power of Jesus, but also the two-sided coin of Christian belief.

In the account of the demon possessed boy (Mark 9:14-29), Jesus had just been away on a mountain. While waiting for his return, a man had approached Jesus’ disciples for help in healing his boy who was possessed by an evil spirit.  The disciples were unable to heal the small boy and because of it, they and the Jewish scribes had gotten into a heated argument.

It is at that point, Jesus returns and asks what they are arguing about. The father explains his son’s dire situation and then asks Jesus, “If you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” Jesus responds, “If I can! All things are possible for one who believes.” To which the father immediately cries, “I believe; help my unbelief!”

Likewise, in the story of Lazarus (John 11:17-45), Mary and Martha (Lazarus’ sisters) call for Jesus to help their dying brother. Jesus tarries and when he finally arrives, Lazarus is already dead and buried, and the funeral procedures are well underway. Both women come to Jesus privately and express their confidence in Jesus’ ability mixed with their disappointment in his delay. Martha says, “If you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” Later a distraught Mary also says, “Lord if you had been here my brother would not have died.” Jesus promises Martha, “Your brother will rise again.” Yet when Jesus asks them to move the stone of Lazarus’ tomb away, Martha questions him saying, “Lord, by now there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days.” In other words, “You are too late to do anything.”

In Matthew 28:17, the disciples are watching Jesus prepare to ascend into heaven and it says, “And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some of them doubted.” The Greek word for “doubted” in this verse is distazo which means to waver between two points of view, to be uncertain at a crossroads, to vacillate.

To be uncertain at the crossroads. To waver between two points of view. Belief and unbelief occupying the same space. British writer, Adrian Plass wrote in his book Why I Follow Jesus, “Perhaps belief and unbelief are two sides of the same coin. You can turn the coin over, but you can’t make the side you’re not looking at go away” (2000, p. 7).

But that’s where Jesus comes in. Our worthiness for the gift of faith, or healing, or a miracle is not dependent on the excellence of our belief or the absence of our unbelief. No, our worthiness is completely dependent on Jesus’ merit.

To the father of the demon possessed boy, Jesus did not walk away affronted by the man’s lack of confidence. Instead, he turned to the boy, cast out the evil spirit, “took him by the hand and lifted him up.” To Mary and Martha, Jesus did not take offense to their limited and shifting belief in his power. Instead he wept with them and then performed one of his greatest miracles – he brought Lazarus back to life. To the doubting disciples standing on the mountain, Jesus did not withhold his blessing from them. Instead he gave them the ultimate job of making disciples of all nations, promising them, “I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

So what do we do about the other side of the coin? What do we do about our uncertainty at the crossroads? How do we manage distazo?

We look to Christ. We cry out, “I believe; help my unbelief!” as the father did. We fall at his feet and pour out our hearts, as Mary did. We allow the stone to be rolled back, as Martha did. We accept Christ’s authority and his promises, as the disciples did. We persistently face the Son so that we cannot see the shadows.  It is in “looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith…” (Hebrews 12:2a) that we see where our strength of faith truly comes.

 “Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see a shadow.” ~ Helen Keller

 

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God’s Inverted Economy

The first lesson of economics is scarcity: there is never enough of anything to fully satisfy all those who want it. The first lesson of politics is to disregard the first lesson of economics. Thomas Sowell

God has an economic plan, but it’s not like the economy we are used to or even comfortable with. For a general description of God’s economic plan read: Proverbs 11:24-28.

 

God’s system of economics seems backwards. Supply has nothing to do with demand. Yet, He promises that for those who seek Him first, His righteousness, and His way, that all the things we need will be there (Matthew 6:33).

God is rich in all things good and He is completely generous. He has modeled His own system for us. We know this because He gave us Jesus. And Jesus gave up everything, He gave it all away – He made himself nothing, He completely emptied Himself. He took on the plight of humanity, and ultimately our death. The result of this undeserved generosity?  God exalted Him to the highest place and at His name we bow (Philippians 2:5-11). And because of Jesus, we have access to everything good. Because of His emptying out, we have God’s blessing, and we have life to the full (John 10:10).

God’s acting on His own economic principles has graciously afforded us salvation, hope, and life to the full. In faith, we receive these incredible blessings. Why not, in faith, also entrust our meager resources to God. Not simply to receive the promised blessings. But also so that we might be a blessing to someone else.

Here are some principles of God’s economy to ponder over this week.

1. God’s economy is not a capitalistic one.
2. God’s economy is based on abundance, not on scarcity.
3. God’s economy is counterintuitive and illogical.
4. A spending freeze will not fix the problem of consumerism. Generosity is the only cure for consumption.
5. Generosity generates blessing.
6. In God’s economy, giving is not a loss, it is always a gain.
7. In God’s economy, expect God’s help. That is honoring to God.
8. “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21).

“Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.”  Malachi 3:10

Dear God, Help us to live in the light of your “inverted” economy. Help us to trust that your economy is best. Amen.

Readings for this week:

Day 2 – Philippians 2:5-11

Day 3 – Matthew 6:19-24

Day 4 – Matthew 6:25-33

Day 5 – 1 Timothy 6:9-11, 17-19; Hebrews 13:5-6

 

*Thank you Pastors Steve, Ryan, and Dion, as well as Emily and my father for their collective insights that made up this study.

 

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Best Laid Plans

@anormanwalker

Reading for today: Acts 16:6-15

In general, our plans don’t always go as intended. Yet God is always directing us to the people, places, and circumstances he has planned for us.

For Paul, Silas, and Timothy, their plans to work in Asia were stopped more than once by the Holy Spirit. Not because their plans were bad, but because God’s plans were better. God had a very special woman and her family in mind. Lydia and her family were waiting to hear and ready to accept the amazing words that Paul and his friends had dedicated their lives to share.

Lydia and her purple cloth, “Purple Girl” photograph by Barry Perks

Some of us, like Paul and his friends, may be fortunate enough to glimpse God’s reasoning behind an unexpected or unwanted life-turn. Others of us can only trust that God has his best, our best, and others’ best in mind with each turn in the road.

My favorite moments, though, are the ones when I get to see the blessing. Every time that happens, I thank God for directing me when I would have otherwise walked away.

Recognize God’s directing. Life will become deeper and fuller as you learn to see the people, places, and circumstances around you as strategically positioned in time and space by God himself and for his better will.

Oh God, I want to want your will to be done. Give me trust. Give me wisdom. Give me strength. Guide me according to your best plans. Amen.

Day 2: Psalm 139

Day 3: Jeremiah 29:11-14; Psalm 138:8; Psalm 143:8

Day 4: Proverbs 19:21; Psalm 33:10-12

Day 5: John 10:3-4; James 1:5; Proverbs 3:5-6

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