“You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good” Genesis 50:20
Every Halloween my wife and I have a tradition. We’ll make a pot of chili and pumpkin cookies and curl up on the couch to watch Bette Midler and Sara Jessica Parker in the Disney classic “Hocus Pocus”. The film portrays three bumbling witches trying to regain their youth while two teens and a child work together to finally put them in their place. In the end evil loses, which is no surprise. In life evil always loses for Jesus sealed the victory on the cross.
God Always Brings The Victory.
Joseph’s life in Genesis 50 is just another example. His brothers sold him into slavery, which brought him to Egypt and through a winding set of circumstances he ultimately became Pharaoh’s right hand man. Then when famine struck, the only place Joseph’s brothers could go for food was Egypt, where they found themselves face to face with the brother they had sold into slavery. The brothers were despondent but Joseph says to them, “What you meant for evil, God meant for good, for here I am saving your life”. The Bible is the ultimate good versus evil story book. Thankfully we know how the story ends. Today, “trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your path straight.” Proverbs 3:5.
“For He (God) gives to His beloved even in his sleep”. Psalm 127:2
My wife and I ordered coffee at our local Breakfast Republic restaurant a few weeks ago. When the coffee arrived, the cups set before us brought a chuckle. I must admit that I’m not a morning person, and the instructions on the cup in the image above pretty much capture my early morning routine. My wife on the other hand is up before dawn and eagerly awaits every sunrise. There have been a few morning’s where I’m up early and I’ll find her sitting on the sofa sipping coffee and watching the sunrise. As the colors of the sky change from deep purple to orange and then daybreak I hear her
Thanking God For A New Day.
What amazes me is that however tired I may have been the night before, a good nights sleep changes everything. What happens when we sleep? Oh, I’ve heard what science has to say, but go deeper. In scripture God makes yet one more promise in Psalm 127:2. “God gives to us in our sleep”. Just what does He give? The offer is open ended, so, He gives whatever we need. Do you need hope, then ask Him for hope before you close your eyes to sleep. Do you need new dreams, provision, health, stamina, relationship answers, then ask before you close your eyes to sleep. Then when you wake the next morning, thank Him for answering your bedtime prayer. For you may not instantly recognize that the prayer has been answered, but with the passage of time the answers will come. Trust is the key.
“The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry…” 1 Kings 17:14
God tells Isaiah to travel to a specific town saying that He has given instructions to a widow to care for him. At this point I’m already fascinated as God did not send Isaiah to a wealthy person to meet his provisional needs, He sends him to a poor widow. Wisely, Isaiah does not question God’s instructions but simply goes to find her. As Isaiah arrives the woman seems to have missed God’s instructions for she’s happy to give him water, but as for anything more she tells Isaiah “I only have a morsal of flour and oil and was about to bake a loaf of bread that my son and I can eat before we die”. Truly she’s beyond poor, but she is also about to realize that
God’s Supply Is Limitless!
Isaiah says to her, “If you share the bread with me, your flour and oil jars will never go empty.” Indeed, this is exactly what transpires. God could have chosen all manner of ways to provide for Isaiah’s next meal, but He chose this widow as she was really the one that needed the blessing. All she had to do was open her hand and share to receive it. The next time you have an opportunity to provide for someone in need, it is more than likely YOU that God is trying to provide the blessing for. God supply is limitless when we open our hand and let what He has already given to us flow freely to others.
Jesus said to him, “Shall I come and heal him?” The centurion replied, “Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed. Jesus was amazed and said, “Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith.” Matthew 8:7-10
I read the words of Jesus in Matthew 8:10 and have so often pondered what kind of faith Jesus would call great. In my lifetime I have seen so many declare with conviction that they have faith that all things are possible, yet I somehow sensed there was a hesitancy to their words. That if they were placed on the witness stand before a great litigator their faith would fold like a cheap tent in a stiff breeze. I for one am guilty as charged. Yes I believe that with Christ all things are possible, but there have been times in my life when I wondered why would He do it for me? Who am I! I’m not worthy of such a miracle from the King of kings and Lord of lords. Early in my faith I remember going through a stage of reasoning that went something like this: Christ healed the sick, raised the dead, caused the lame to walk and the blind to see, but those are just the few who won the holy lottery. Miracles like that just don’t happen today, or if they do, they certainly would not happen for me. Can you relate? Then I began to witness miracle after miracle happening around me.
Miracles Can’t Be Ignored.
Great stories of cancer’s disappearing after prayer with no medical explanation. Sight returning to a man after leaving a church service. A clinically dead man coming back to life while lying in a body bag in a morgue just as his mother was praying for him long distance several states away. With each new story my thoughts would drift back to the soldier in Matthew 8:10. What kind of faith did he have? By the way Christ reacted to him, his was not a shallow faith, or a questioning faith, or a fence walking faith. His was a faith of deep conviction. There was no question in his mind that all Christ had to do was say the word and it would be done. Yet what convicted me the most was that the soldier was a stranger to Christ, someone Jesus had never met before. And yet this soldier came to Jesus with a no holds barred, no doubt whatsoever kind of faith that this miracle worker he’d heard stories of had the power to heal his servant. From Christ reaction we learn that this soldier, a perfect stranger, had more faith in him than even Christ’s own disciples! Now we come to you and I. Let this story of the solider be a wake up call to your faith! Jesus Christ performs miracles, yesterday, today and tomorrow! The key is faith. If you need a miracle in your life, approach Jesus like the soldier did in Matthew 8. Don’t take my word for it. Open your bible and go read the story for yourself. It will take you five minutes, but there is a miracle waiting for you at the end of that five minutes! For when you ask of your Lord, in faith, believing, miracles happen, and they will happen for you!
Picture yourself standing in the crowd at the foot of the cross, yet somehow you neither hear nor feel anyone around you. At this moment your mind is singularly focused on Jesus, hanging on a cross with steel spikes in His hands and through His feet. You hear him say, “Father forgive them for they know not what they do” and you know that this must be the Christ, for how else could He pray such a prayer. Then at three in the afternoon the sky goes black and all doubt is removed from your mind. Jesus is the Christ. Then you watch him give up His spirit and die. Suddenly you feel alone. Picture yourself many days later in a room with your friends and suddenly, quietly, without fanfare, Jesus is standing next to you. You can feel Him, hug Him, touch him. Was the cross a dream? Surely it was a dream. And then you feel the nail prints in His palms and you realize the dream was not a dream. What you witnessed was real, just as real as the Christ standing before you. That’s when you realize that the ground upon which you are standing is Holy ground. You are holding the hand of Jesus Christ, the resurrected Son of the living God. Picture yourself beside a crystal blue sea many days later. Jesus has made a campfire and as you approach the fish are already cooking. He knows you are tired from your long night on the water and has breakfast hot and ready just for you. As you approach there is something about being in His presence. There is
Peace You Cannot Explain,
and a joy that is not of this world. You feel it deep in your soul. There is no longer a veil between you and God. God in Christ, the very Creator of the Heavens and the earth is with you. Then He looks you in the eye as He hands you a plate and says, “Do you love me?” Your response comes out without a second thought, “you know that I love you”. Then Jesus says something you are not expecting. “Then feed my sheep”, and it gives you pause. I do love Christ, you say, so why am I not doing what He’s called me to do. Am I scared? Afraid of losing my position or my status? Am I afraid of actually doing what He’s calling me to? Friends, you can do ALL things that Jesus is calling you to. All you have to do is rely on Him alone and not yourself for the strength. Jesus is asking you today, “do you love me?”
“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13
“I have learned to be content,” Paul wrote, “whether in plenty or in want. I know how to be abased and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” How often does this scripture verse come to mind for you? Is this powerful verse on your lips continually? The older I get, the more I find myself praying this verse as a prayer no matter what my circumstances are. For I live for my Savior and not for myself. I’m here to serve Him. Whether in plenty or in want I can wake up each morning with a smile on my lips and love in my heart because
Christ Sustains Me.
You too can wake each morning with a smile on your lips and love in your heart. Whether stricken with cancer, or holding a new baby in your arms. Whether losing a job or gaining a new career. Whether losing a loved one or walking down the aisle. You can do ALL things through Christ who promises to strengthen you. For it is Jesus Himself who said, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and all these things shall be added unto you!”
Jesus said, “Thomas, because you have seen me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen me and yet have believed.” John 20:29
If you are anything like me you have gone through times in your life when faith is fleeting. Times when you’ve thrown in the towel on faith only to become a “Christmas and Easter Christian”. A social Christian in name only with no real relevance or presence in your life. I know the feeling. I’ve lived through that time in my life. Jesus, in another passage, compares great faith to that the size of a mustard seed that can literally move mountains. A mustard seed is indeed small and yet I’ve known times when my faith was even smaller. Times when God was the farthest thing from my mind. Life was all about the next fraternity party, or the next paycheck, or the coveting the new Porsche a wealthy college friend just purchased. Life was all about the world around me. A self centered life. And yet, somewhere deep in my mind the faith of my childhood lingered. The prayer I prayed to receive Christ at the age of five one night as my mother tucked me in was never really far away. Every minute of every hour
Christ Was Patiently Waiting.
He was always there, lingering in the background, waiting, excited to lovingly welcome me home. At unexpected times in that still small voice He would softly say, “when you are ready, come home”. I think you know that voice…His voice. After graduation I drove from the University of Denver through the Rocky Mountains and through the majestic towering peaks of Utah’s Monument Valley. With each new colorful vista all I could see was the handiwork of Almighty God. I wasn’t looking for Him that day but He was calling out to me with wonders I could not ignore. At one point on that long drive I heard Christ say in that still small voice, “How long are you going to run from me?” My life changed on that 900 mile, 18 hour drive. A drive that led me out of the wilderness I’d made of my life and into a life of abundant faith. Faith was reborn simply because I made a choice. I said yes, again. Perhaps that’s why this passage from John means so much to me. Many have said to me in the 35 years since that 900 mile journey, “if only I had the faith of the disciples who knew and walked with Jesus, how different my life would be.” Yet here, in John 20:29 Jesus says directly to you, “blessed are you who have not seen me and yet you believe”. Faith is a choice you have to make alone. You are not forced into it. It is not made for you by another. You alone choose to believe. Yet how blessed you are when you do! Your Savior is calling. Choose faith today!
“Cast your burdens on the Lord, and He shall sustain you….” Psalm 55:22
A few days ago I was walking down the aisle of our local grocery store as a well dressed mother hurriedly rushed through while dragging along her seven or eight year old son in his grass stained soccer uniform. Mom’s outfit was a very professional, neatly tailored business suit. Not a hair was out of place as her long high heals clacked with each step on the linoleum tile floor. Her son’s soccer cleats were also clacking, but at twice the pace in trying to keep up with his obviously overburdened and late for something mother. With every step there was a scolding. What was said is not worth repeating because it doesn’t really matter. By now you know the drill. Your mother dragged you in a similar scenario, or you, your children. I’ll admit, I’ve been there and done that myself. As we rush about with the pressures of the world bearing down on us it’s so easy to take it out on whoever dares step into our path. The beginning verses of Psalm 55 describe it so well, “Give ear to my prayer Oh God….Attend to me, and hear me. I am restless in my complaint and moan noisily…” Yes, David, the author of the Psalms, knew how to whine and complain just as well as we do!
We Are Restless In Our Stress,
and yet we don’t have to be. Just a few verses later in the Psalms David get’s it right, “Cast your burdens on the Lord and He shall sustain you.” Of course you are always welcome to continue to live your stressed out life, and yet there is such a better alternative. God invites you to cast your burdens upon Him. Your reward for living out such faith is that He will sustain you! Relief for you is just a childlike prayer away. Today, when I think of childlike faith I’m picturing that little boy in his soccer uniform being dragged down the grocery store aisle. As his mother bellowed her distress, the look on his face was utter calm and amazement at all the pretty colors and goodies lining the store shelves. His face said to me, mom’s stressed, what else is new! But look at all those wonderful, colorful cereal boxes! Stressed out or childlike wonder, the choice is yours! Cast your burdens on the Lord and He will sustain you!
“He calms the storm, so that its waves are still.” Psalm 107:29
There is no burden you carry that is beyond God’s power to rescue you. There is no grief you feel that is beyond God’s tender voice to sooth. There is no stress heaped upon your shoulders that is beyond God’s gentle hand to lift away. God calms the storms so that its waves are still. It takes only the utterance of the name of the author of peace: Jesus. Cry out to Him in the middle of your storm and say, Jesus I need you. Say it in a whisper, Jesus draw near to me. Speak it silently in your mind, Jesus my Savior and my Friend. It does not matter how you call out to Him,
He Will Hear You.
“Now when He (Jesus) got into a boat, His disciples followed Him. And suddenly a great tempest arose on the sea, so that the boat was covered with the waves. But He was asleep. Then His disciples came to Him and awoke Him, saying, “Lord, save us! We are perishing!” But He said to them, “Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?” Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm.” Matthew 8:23-26. Call out to Jesus and He will draw near to you. The calm you so desperately seek is only a prayer away.
God said, “Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.” Jeremiah 33:3
As an athlete you are taught at a very young age that when your time to shine has come, just breathe. As a performer getting ready to take the stage and your every nerve is on edge, you are told, just breathe. As a mother in childbirth you are told, just breathe. As a father when you feel like you don’t know how to care for your family you are told, just breathe. As a prospective employee walking into that final interview, you remind yourself, just breathe.
Breath Is Life
There is something about breathing. The mere act of taking breath into our lungs calms the nerves and relaxes the mind. Now it’s time for you to take that simple act of breathing to a level far beyond your imagination. As you take that deep breath, whisper the name of Jesus. With each deep breath, simply say one name, Jesus. Invite the King of kings into your circumstance. “Call on Me,” God is saying to you, “and I will answer you” He promises. “And will show you great and mighty things which you do not know.”
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