Hope Unswervingly

  Read 2 Chronicles 20:5-12 When the people had gathered to seek God together, King Jehoshaphat prayed aloud on behalf of their nation. His words are recorded in these verses. Notice how he starts by recalling God’s great and miraculous interventions for Israel as they came into the Promised Land. He acknowledges that they have been up against some impossible situations before and God has seen them through it. Because of their history together, Jehoshaphat and his people were again seeking help from the God they knew they could count on. There is a very human element to this prayer—a desperate plea for the Lord to act. You know, when we came out of Egypt, you (God) told us to leave these people alone and not drive them out. Now they are coming after us! We need you to help us protect the land that you gave us ! He is at once praising God for His power and reminding Him of His promise to the Israelite people. Once Jehoshaphat has laid everything out before God, he gets down to...

  Read Isaiah 30:20-22 What truth is contained in these verses!! When we seek the Lord during hard times, things will become clearer and powerful things happen. Let's look at the three basic lessons that have become clear to me as I've studied this passage. First, God provides what we need – “meager bread and water.” Although we may be learning to do without some things, we still have a God who will meet our needs and help us become aware of our greediness for more than that. He has promised that when we first seek Him, He will provide for the daily stuff we tend to worry about (Matthew 6:33). Second, our Teacher will not be hidden and He will not be silent. Adversity helps us to grow and to learn about what God wants from us. As we stumble through the chaos, we will begin to see God in the midst of it, and God’s voice will become clearer.   He will lead us in His ways. Finally, when we are struggling, our lives get sifted. As the shaking continues, we begin to recogni...

 Read Galatians 4:5-7 We sat on the steps leading to the beach at a pristine northern Minnesota Lake. We were surrounded by tall Norway pines which swayed and whispered in the wind high above us. The sun sparkled on the clear water. There was beauty all around, but my attention was mostly drawn to my 2 1/2 year old grandson, Matthew. Matthew had discovered a jumping spot - a place where railroad ties held back the sand and offered an 18" drop - perfect for a little boy to test his jumping skills. After taking his first tentative leap, Matthew decided this was a very fun game, and circled back to the steps beside us, approached the ledge, and jumped again. Over and over, he made the circle. However, he added one step as he repeated his leap. Each time he came to the ledge, he patted his daddy's head, sweetly asked, "How 'ya doin', Daddy?" and then jumped. Sometimes he landed on his feet, sometimes on his knees, and a few times, he almost face-planted in the sa...

Read Psalm 25:12-15 Much of the waiting process has to do with learning where your focus needs to be. If we focus on what we don’t have or don’t yet know, we lose out on so much of what God has for us right now. These verses of Psalm 25 remind us of the benefits of keeping our eyes focused on God. The one who lives in worshipful submission to God Almighty will be given direction in life (v. 12) Our human understanding does not give us a complete or accurate picture of what it will take to get to the end result of our waiting, but God does know that picture. If we stay focused on Him, we will receive His guidance as we navigate this unfamiliar road. I’m one who likes to travel with a map in her lap. I enjoy looking ahead at the route, knowing the final destination, and marking off the cities and landmarks we go by on the way there. I am less enamored with a GPS that only shows me the next turn I’ll need to make. I guess that requires a lot more trust in the device than I tend to hav...

Read Psalm 37:23-24 “I don’t know what to do!” My sister and I would start to make this comment during summer vacation from school as soon as the initial novelty of “free time” wore off. My mother would often list off some ideas – some fun, and some work – and we would consider whether each idea was the one we would choose. Eventually, if she didn’t say something we wanted to do, we would decide to go figure it out ourselves - much to Mom’s pleasure, I’m sure. We can easily get caught up in figuring out God’s specific instructions to us in a particular situation. We ask, “What should I do, Lord?” But when we don’t hear a specific answer, this can paralyze us. I don’t know what to do so I won’t do anything yet.   Satan can put thoughts in our head like these: ·          God doesn’t care about me or He would answer. ·          There must be something wrong with me that I can’t hear from Go...