Go Back to the Basics

It’s so easy to get overwhelmed with life, with disappointments, with sin, with discouragements—and all the rest. What do we do? Where do we go? To whom do we turn?

Go back to the basics.  

• Read your Bible. Even read it out loud.  Your own ears need to HEAR it! The Word of God is our authority, our help, our counsel, our encouragement.  
• Pray. God knows it all, but he wants to hear from you. Tell him your innermost secrets and fears. Call on prayer warriors to pray with you—and over you.  
• Listen.  Listen to God’s voice.  Seek wise counsel. Go to a Christian counselor. 
• Ask God for TRUTH! Knowing the truth sets us free. We often avoid truth—and don’t want to hear it. But asking God for truth should be a daily request—especially in the day in which we live!!
• Take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. This is so important. Satan speaks to us in first person singular—“I.”  He doesn’t say, “Becky, you’re stupid!”  He’s the great deceiver.  He says, “I am stupid”—so you think it’s your own thoughts!!  Examine every thought. Pull it out of your mind and look at it.  Is it negative, derogatory, an accusation, a temptation, willful, stubborn, ugly?  That’s the enemy!  Toss that thought to the pit of hell where it belongs! Fill your mind with scripture, spiritual songs, and TRUTH!! Don’t let the enemy have free reign in your mind. He only wants to take your mind on a spiral towards destruction.  

Going back to these basics can set you free. Your circumstances may not change overnight, but your frame of mind can change day-by-day. How do I know?  God has done it in my own life. Any time I’ve hit bottom emotionally and spiritually, I go back to the basics. They are life-giving.  

And God wants to give you life abundantly.  

Waiting

What does God teach us in the waiting?

1. To be patient
2. To quiet your heart
3. Gentleness
4. To hear God
5. To not get ahead of God
6. To learn how to strategize 
7. To grow your faith
8. To learn how to help others as you wait
9. To occupy
10. To believe God and trust His heart
11. Submission
12. To be more concerned for others
13. To grow in love
14. Obedience
15. Peace
16. A different view or viewpoint
17. Joy
18. Self-control and dying to self
19. Fruitfulness
20. Growth
21. To keep in step with the Spirit of God

I’ve been in many waiting rooms. It’s not particularly fun. It has certainly stretched me! Today, I read about Saul not waiting for Samuel to come make a sacrifice—he unlawfully made the sacrifice himself. His act of impatience cost him the kingdom. 

What has my impatience cost me? Mostly, growth in obedience. A lot of times, peace—because my heart stays all stirred up. Sometimes, a place of usefulness in the kingdom of God because I refuse to submit. 

What have I learned in the waiting?  That God’s way is best—and worth waiting for. 

What have you learned in the waiting?

Asking for a King

Israel wanted a king. The trouble with that is that they already had a King—God! 

How many times have I done that? I may not desire a literal king to reign over me. Oh no! I want to be my own king!! God recently revealed my own heart to me: I don’t like to be told what to do. Wow. 

It’s kind of the American way—or maybe the way of the world now. We want to do whatever makes us happy. We don’t want to serve others. We don’t even want to serve God. We bristle when anyone tries to instruct us—or we just tune them out. Or is that just me??

After the people repented, Samuel told them, “You’ve done wickedly, but don’t turn away from following God. Instead, serve him with all of your heart.” That’s what we’re prone to do, isn’t it? When confronted with sin, we shrug our shoulders and give up. We think, “I can’t do this perfectly—I might as well give up.”

Don’t give up! Like I had to do, repent of your pride and insolence. Give God your heart!! Submit to him and follow him with everything you have. 

Submit to your one true King—God. 

Have You Been Told You’re Not Enough?

Gideon’s & Saul’s stories are so similar.  The Angel of the Lord found Gideon hiding in the winepress sifting wheat for fear of his enemies.  When the Lord found him there, he said, “Hail, Mighty Warrior!”  He didn’t seem very mighty, did he?

Saul had been told by Samuel he would be king. But as  each tribe was brought before Samuel for God to show Israel who would be king, Saul couldn’t be found.  He was hiding with the luggage! It doesn’t sound very kingly, does it?

Why did both men appear so insecure?  Here’s their answer. Gideon said, “Oh my Lord, how can I save Israel?  My clan is the weakest in Manasseh and I am the least in my father’s house.”  Saul said, “Am I not a Benjamite, of the smallest of the tribes of Israel, and my family the least of all the families of the tribe?”

Gideon came from the smallest tribe—by the number of men.  Saul came from the youngest brother of the tribes of Israel. But somehow, from all of that, they believed they were nobodies!  Satan’s tactics haven’t changed, have they?

Who did God say they were?  God said Gideon was a mighty warrior!!  And Saul?  God said he was a king!!

Who does God say YOU are?  Come in agreement with Him!  You are more than enough with God. 

How Effective are You?

Israel was worshiping idols…again. They began regretting what they’d done and became sorrowful about the state of their lives. Samuel spoke to them and instructed them to get rid of their idols and come together so he could pray for them. They did. But the Philistines heard they were all together and came against them. Samuel cried out to God on behalf of Israel and offered a sacrifice and God sent thunder so loud that it confused the Philistines and they were overcome. I Samuel 7:13 says, “And the hand of the Lord was against the Philistines all the days of Samuel.”

Why was Samuel so effective?

1. He obeyed God. He was doing what God called him to do. He was judging Israel. 

2. He called for repentance. He told Israel to return to the Lord with all their hearts. 

3. He wasn’t soft on sin. He pointed out exactly what sin they were involved in—worshiping Ashteroth & Baal.  

4. He knew how to approach God. He drew water and poured it out before the Lord. All of Israel fasted. He offered a lamb as a sacrifice. He kept crying out to God on Israel’s behalf. 

5. When God answered his prayers, he set up a stone of remembrance.  

Samuel was effective, faithful, persistent, and obedient. Because of that, God was against his enemies all the days of his life. 

God, help me to be effective, faithful, persistent, and obedient. 

God’s Power in Us!

The ark of the covenant carried the presence of God.  If we are followers of Jesus and have given him our hearts, we have become the temple of God and He lives in us!  We carry His presence everywhere we go.  

What does that even mean?  In I Samuel 5, the Philistines stole the ark of the covenant and took it to their temple and set it by their idol, Dagon.  The next morning, Dagon had fallen on its face before the ark.  The people set it back up.  The next morning, Dagon had fallen again and its head and hands had broken off—before the ark.  And the Lord struck the people with tumors everywhere they took the ark until the ark was returned to Israel. 

I think we’re completely unaware of everything that happens as we carry the presence of God into a room. Do demons tremble? Do they have to bow in the presence of God in us? Are they broken in pieces and rendered powerless? Does God in us change the atmosphere?

Or are we so filled with self that God in us is veiled? Do demons mock and laugh? I’m pretty sure demons are more aware of God’s power in us than we are!

Cleanse us, Father. Make us a holy people—set apart to do Your purpose! Make us the pure bride of Christ as we carry your name and presence everywhere we go. Let us walk in Your power. In Jesus’ name, amen. 

A Tragic Story

Judges 19 holds a tragic story. A Levite had a concubine who ran away. He went to her father’s house to bring her home. On the way home, they stopped in Gibeah to spend the night because this town was of the tribe of Benjamin—relatives.  That night, perverse men came banging on the door of the home where they were staying, wanting sex with this Levite. Instead, he gave them his concubine.  She was raped all night by a group of men…and died.  

I’ve always hated this story and focused on the injustice and brutality of this woman. But today, I saw something else. In chapter 17, it says, “In those days, there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.” Apparently, this Levite gave his concubine (instead of himself) to these men because it seemed right and fair in his eyes. 

And then I saw the most tragic part of this story: these perverse men were God’s people. They were from the tribe of Benjamin. This Levite was from the priestly tribe of Levi! They had all been a part of God’s deliverance! But from the time of Joshua until this Levite, worshiping and honoring God had been forgotten and “they did what was right in their own eyes.” They had all become perverse. 

Doesn’t it seem people today are “doing what is right in their own eyes?” God wants our story to end differently. He is our King! And he’s given us the right way to live. It’s our duty to read the Word of God and obey it—and then to train our children to honor God.  Otherwise, we’ll have our own tragic story. 

Patterns

 

This morning, I was reading about Samson in Judges 14. He’d found a girl he wanted to marry. At the feast, he posed a riddle to the 30 young groomsmen and promised them a change of clothes if they could solve his riddle.  If they didn’t solve it, they had to give him 30 changes of clothing. They couldn’t solve it.  But they threatened his fiancé and she cajoled Samson until he relented and gave her the answer.  She told the groomsmen and Samson then killed 30 men of Ashkelon and gave their clothing to these groomsmen.  

My thought was this…

This became a pattern in Samson’s life.  He later did the same thing with Delilah!   He told her the secret of his strength when she seduced him and then lost that strength when she cut his hair. 

What is a pattern in my life?!?

I only had to ask the question…and God quickly answered.  

Finishing Well

           Ephod which only the high priest wore.  

I began seriously reading and studying the Bible in my 30’s.  And the more I read, the more I realized very few people finished well.  They did great things…but then gave in to pride or other sins.  Gideon is an example.  

The Angel of the Lord found Gideon hiding in the winepress threshing wheat so the enemy wouldn’t swoop in and steal the food. (Think A Bug’s Life). He was called out, “Hail Mighty Warrior!”  His name means mighty warrior.  The Angel of the Lord told him, “Go in this strength of yours and you shall save Israel from the hand of the Midianites.”   And he did through several valiant, miraculous battles.  But at the end of the last battle, the people wanted to make him king and he refused saying God was their king.  But in the next breath, he asked for their gold earrings and made an ephod and “all Israel played the harlot with it. It became a snare to Gideon and his house.”

How did he have valiant victories only to end poorly?  I believe it’s because he began depending on his own strength instead of God’s strength. Did he finally embrace who God created him to be (valiant warrior) only to overextend his strength?  Or maybe he began serving money instead of God. Either way…he lost focus.  

It’s imperative we stay in the Word and pursue truth to finish well. We have to fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.  We’ll fail when we think we’ve got everything under control.  

Let’s ask God to help us finish well!

Spiritual Storm

Five years ago, I was opening our metal storm door so I could set my plants outside to catch the falling rain. When I touched the handle, every hair on my body stood at attention!! At that same moment lightening struck and thunder crashed!  The next morning, Andy found lightening had struck our church steeple only yards away.  

Have you ever felt that electricity in the air? It’s crazy!! How about spiritually? I’m feeling it now. It seems every cell of my body is standing at attention waiting to see what is about to happen.  II Timothy 3:1 tells us, “But know this that in the last days perilous times will come.” The Greek word for “perilous” means “hard to do, hard to bear, dangerous, troublesome, harsh, fierce, savage.” It infers our strength will be reduced.  

It’s coming. Stay alert spiritually. Don’t discount those feelings of intensity, unusual tiredness, feelings of chaos, and of being overwhelmed. Satan is the prince of the power of the air for a short time and he’s striking because his day is almost over. His frenzied activity is increasing. 

Stay in the Word. Stay focused on Jesus. Be still. Quit pushing. Wait on God. Listen for his voice. 

A storm is coming—but so is Jesus!

In the Center of God’s Will

As pastors and wives (and anyone else), it’s often hard to make decisions when we know it’s going to affect our children.  A move can mean they’re leaving good friends, a wonderful school or teacher, or extended family.  It may not come at a good time or it may affect an important stage of life.  They may resist or even make your life miserable. But remember this…the safest place for your child is for you to be in the center of God’s will.  And you can trust a Father who loves them more than you and is allowing these things for their future and their benefit.  We can’t see into the future, but He can.  And you can trust His heart.