Six words we should stop saying

"Christ Feeding the Multitude" by Gustave Doré

TODAY’S SPECIAL: John 5-6; Psalm 105

 TO CHEW ON: “‘There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two small fish, but what are they among so many?’” John 6;9

Philip added to his answer about how much food they had, his opinion of their supply: “What are they among so many?” This is not an unfamiliar sentiment to us when we compare what we have with the need. So it’s reassuring to remind ourselves that Jesus’ feeding of the crowd here is not the only time in the Bible God came to the aid of the desperately needy.

• The psalmist claims God’s help for mental need: “The LORD preserves the simple; I was brought low and the HE saved me” - Psalm 116:6.

• Jesus healed a recalcitrant medical condition where a woman, after 12 years of hemorrhaging, had exhausted medical help - Mark 5:25-29.

• Those in storms received God’s help. Jesus came to the disciples when He saw them “straining at rowing for the wind was against them” - Mark 6:48. And a whole boatload was saved through the prayers of Paul - Acts 27:14-42.

• Jesus came to the aid of a desperate father by casting out a spirit that had oppressed his son since birth - Mark 9:17-29.

• An angel came to the aid of Peter shackled in prison - Acts 12:5-10.

Let these stories remind us that God is never limited by our lack. So whatever our need and however puny the resources at hand, let’s forever stop the faith-destroying words “What are they among so many?” from crossing our lips.

PRAYER: Dear Father, thank You that You are never limited by my meager resources. Help me to look to You, not myself and what’s around me, when I’m in need. Amen.

PSALM TO PRAY: Psalm 105

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Right priorities

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Haggai 1-2; Psalm 59

TO CHEW ON:  "You looked for much, but indeed, it came to little; and when you brought it home, I blew it away. 'Why/' says the Lord of Hosts. 'Because of My house that is in ruins, while everyone of you runs to his own house.'"  Haggai 1:9


Haggai had returned home to Jerusalem with the other exiles from Babylon in 536 B.C. Now, sixteen years later, the temple still lay in ruins. And the people weren't doing so well either. They were working hard but in spite of that, their crops were failing, they were often hungry, and it was if they had put their wages in holey bags.

It was in this situation that God spoke to Haggai, and Haggai gave God's message to Governor Zerubbabel and High Priest Joshua.

God explained why this was happening: "Because of My house that is in ruins, while every one of you runs to his own house." In other words, the exiles had given their own interests top priority while neglecting God's interests. The dismal situation in the country was not just bad luck, but had come on them as a result of their violating a fundamental Kingdom of God principle.

A footnote in my Bible explains:

"The people were apparently using their poverty, food shortages and inflation as excuses not to finish the temple. In actuality, they are judgments for failing to build (vs. 9-11). Somewhat similarly, when God's people fail to tithe and honour the Sabbath in an effort to have enough money and enough time for themselves, their efforts are in vain because they deny themselves God's blessing on their efforts. God was not denying houses for the people; He was asking that they prioritize the building of His house and thereby trust Him for the building of theirs." - New Spirit Filled Life Bible, p. 1243.

We find this principle—of attending to God's interests first before our own, with the promise that in the meantime our needs will be met—woven throughout the Bible. Jesus articulates it clearly in Matthew 6:25-33. It is part of the mysterious economy of the Kingdom of Heaven that when we try to satisfy our own needs and desires first, we'll be in want. But when we give God our first and best, we'll have abundance.

How can we respond?

- Understand God's principle of giving.
- Make God's priorities our priorities.
- Give Him the first of our time, talent and treasure.
- Do not live by the world system, which tells us to look out for ourselves first.
- Honor God and He will honor us.

— "Truth in Action through Haggai," New Spirit Filled Life Bible, p. 1246.

PRAYER: Dear God, thank You for this reminder of how Your kingdom works. Help me to work it by putting You and Your interests first in my life today. Amen.

PSALM TO PRAY: Psalm 59

The Bible Project VIDEO: Haggai (Read Scripture Series)



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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
 

Live (and die) with abundance

TODAY'S SPECIAL: 2 Peter 1:1-21

TO CHEW ON: "… for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ." 2 Peter 1:11

The Bible is full of promises of abundance:

[Abundance: 1) a plentiful or overflowing supply; great number or quantity. 2) Fullness. 3) Wealth, affluence - Funk & Wagnalls Standard College Dictionary.]

• Jesus came to give us abundant life - John 10:10.

• God gives us abundant grace - 2 Corinthians 9:8.

• God works in and through us with abundant power - Ephesians 3:20.

• He will supply our needs from His riches - Philippians 4:19.

• We have an abundant entrance into His kingdom - 2 Peter 1:11—our focus verse.

But notice, in our verse, the little hinge words "for so." They tell us that this abundant entrance has some conditions. This promise follows Peter's instructions to his readers of what they are to do—and do with some energy, "giving all diligence" - 2 Peter 1:5.

They are to add these qualities or attitudes to their lives:

faith
virtue (value, moral excellence and goodness)
knowledge
self-control
perseverance
godliness
brotherly kindness
love

"… if these things are yours and abound" (notice another relative of abundance here), Peter promises his readers will be fruitful, far-sighted (not "short-sighted"), "making their call and election sure" (we might say their lifestyle ties the bow on the fact that God has chosen / elected them for salvation), and walking sure-footed (they will "never stumble") into their eternal home ("the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.")

I love how Peter challenges his readers—of long ago and us today—to not just live as close to the line of the old life as possible, but to live for abundance, giving themselves with energy to pleasing God so they not only live well but also die well. Such teaching is never out of date.

PRAYER: Dear God, thank You for Your promise of abundance in many categories. Help me to diligently add faith, virtue, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love to my life so that I too will have an abundant entrance into my eternal home. Amen.

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The Holy Bible, New King James Version Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. - Used with permission.

Scarcity versus Abundance

The curious house - Photo © 2016 by V. Nesdoly

TODAY’S SPECIAL: Luke 6:37-49

TO CHEW ON: “‘Give and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.’” Luke 6:38

On our daily walk, hubby and I pass a curious house. For a long time it appeared empty—perhaps marked as a tear-down. Then one day someone moved in. We saw interesting changes: murals painted on the facade, the front yard made into a sawdust walk bordered with lawn ornaments. Stuff accumulating in the yard and driveway: mattresses, lawn furniture, bicycle parts, vehicles. We concluded it had become the home of hoarders.

One of the speakers at our church’s Wednesday morning women’s meeting spoke of hoarding. Some points from the notes I took that morning;

• Sin caused us to become hoarders.

• Hoarding begins with the assumption of scarcity—we fear there won’t be enough.

• We can live with a scarcity mentality not only toward material things but also toward relationships:

- I don’t have enough time for people.
- I am not enough.
- If I get too involved I will lose my identity.
- With hoarding there is also an element of secrecy. We hide things away. We keep to ourselves.

But Jesus here challenged His listeners—and us—to live an entirely different way—with an abundance mentality, with hospitality, an open hand, as conduits of His abundance. Then, He says (and I like to think of this as one of the “laws of gravity” of the Kingdom of God), we will receive back, not only the quantity we’ve given but “good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over.”

PRAYER: Dear Jesus, help me, through open-handed, hospitable living and giving, to prove Your law of abundance in my life. Amen.

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Go to God first

Image: Pixabay.com

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Psalm 107:23-43

TO CHEW ON: "Then they cry out to the Lord in their trouble
And He brings them out of their distresses." Psalm 107:28


"I've talked to God more in the last few days than ever before in my life," I heard a woman say on a news interview. She had just lived through the recent West Virginia flood.

It's not unusual for us to call out to God during disaster. The characters in Psalm 107 certainly do. In the middle of a storm at sea where the waves pitching the boat "… mount up to the heavens," then "… go down again to the depths," the sailors "… are at their wits' end. Then they cry out to the Lord in their trouble" - Psalm 107:23-28.

The writer of Psalm 107 tells of God coming through for the troubled and harassed:

• He gets them out of trouble:

"He brings them out of their distresses
He calms the storm…" - Psalm 107:28,29.

• He guides:

'He guides them to their safe haven" - Psalm 107:30.

• He supplies (even supernaturally):

"He turns a wilderness into pools of water
And dry land into watersprings" - Psalm 107:35.

• He blesses:

"He also blesses them, and they multiply greatly" - Psalm 107:38.

• In fact, He even turns the natural order around for them:

"He pours contempt on princes
And causes them to wander in the wilderness
Yet He sets the poor on high" - Psalm 107:40,41.

The grand conclusion of all this is that God is a God of love and kindness:

"Whoever is wise will observe these things,
And they will understand the lovingkindness of God" - Psalm 107:43.

Whatever trouble we're in, whether it is from a natural disaster, a health crisis, a financial crunch, a storm in the family, the oppression of government, let's let this psalm inspire us to do the thing we often do last, first: Call On God. When he personally demonstrates His lovingkindess to us, perhaps we'll be inspired to pen our own version of Psalm 107.


PRAYER: Dear Father, the cynical side of me says, "This is too simplistic" and "It doesn't always work out so smoothly." So help me to trust Your lovingkindness when I'm in the middle of a crisis and don't see (or understand) Your goodness. Help me to have the simple faith of the writer of Psalm 107. Amen.

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

A Thank-You List

 "The valleys also are covered with grain..." Psalm 65:13 

Round bales near Chetwynd B.C. - Photo by V. Nesdoly

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Psalm 65:1-13

TO CHEW ON: "You crown the year with Your goodness,
And your paths drip with abundance." Psalm 65:11

On this Thanksgiving Sunday (in Canada), Psalm 65 reminds us of how wide-ranging and robust God's goodness to us is.

He has made a way for us to approach Him (Psalm 65:1-4):

• He hears our prayers.

• He provides atonement for our transgressions (sins—the times we miss the mark). [Atonemebt = kaphar, which means to cover over, atone for sin, make atonement]

• He chooses and draws us to Himself (Psalm 65:4 compare to John 6:37).

• Our worship spot—for David a temple, for most of us a church—has its own set of benefits and goodnesses.

He is responsive to us (Psalm 65:5-8):

• He answers our prayers in righteous and awesome ways.

• The storms of nature and human conflict which mystify and frighten us—He has power to still them.

• Nature's beauty, as in each sunrise and sunset, is a joyful reminder of Him.

He provides for us (Psalm 65:9-13):

• He sends rain. This summer even our normally rainy corner of B.C. was dry, dry, dry. In late August on the first day of rain in weeks and weeks, I'm sure I heard the ground and plants sigh with relief. This year I particularly thank God for rain.

• There is abundance—green sprouting in the desert, hills bursting into bloom, sheep dotting the landscape, fields of ripening grain. We might add orchards dropping fruit, vines heavy with reddening tomatoes or sweetening grapes, grocery store shelves so bountifully stocked we have a hard time choosing.

Let's pause with David on this weekend set aside for gratitude, to sincerely thank God for His gifts to us in every department of life!

PRAYER: Dear God, please forgive me for my often ungrateful and entitled attitude. Thank You for salvation. Thank You for my relationship with You. Thank You for more than enough for my physical well-being and enjoyment. Many, many thanks! Amen.

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.