Revelation through disappointment

Jonah and the vine

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Jonah 4:1-11

TO CHEW ON: "So Jonah went out of the city and sat on the east side of the city. There he made himself a shelter and sat under it in the shade, till he might see what would become of the city." Jonah 4:5

Jonah had done his bit. Now he made sure he had a front row seat for what would happen next.

And what did happen? Nothing!

A guest speaker at our church recently made this thought-provoking statement: "Whenever your experience doesn't live up to expectation, God is trying to give you a revelation"- Robert Madu

What revelation of God might Jonah get through his disappointment? One thing was surely that God was not only a God of black-and-white judgment, but that He was "gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abundant in loving kindness. One who relents from doing harm" - Jonah 4:2.

But wait, there's more. Jonah was delighted by the swift-growing vine that sheltered him from the sun. But when it died just as suddenly and he was subjected to the wind and sun, he mourned the vine's loss and wished for death for himself.

God brought to his attention how out-of-whack his values were. He was mourning the destruction of a vine, while hoping to see the destruction of an entire city including innocent children and animals.  His second revelation was how unlike God he was in his shallow self-centeredness.

Leslyn Musch says in her "Truth-In-Action Through Jonah" article:

"Jonah's faith in God was unwavering. He knew without a doubt who God was and that God would be true to His character. Transforming faith, however, is more than just knowledge about God. It changes us and molds us into the image of the One in whom we place our trust and it is expressed through our actions and our attitudes" - Leslyn Musch, "Truth-In-Action Through Jonah," New Spirit-Filled Life Bible, p. 1200 (emphasis added).

In the area of transforming faith, Jonah didn't have it. But am I any better? Are you?  Don't we too often sulk when God does things differently than we expect? We too show off our faulty priorities when we are more preoccupied with our own comfort than the destiny of the souls of those around us. Sad to say, I detect more than a little of Jonah in me.

PRAYER: Dear God, as I learn about You, through happy and disappointing times, help me to incorporate these insights into my life. I want to pass the transformed-attitudes-and-actions test that separates head faith with lived-out faith.

MORE: What kind of plant was Jonah's vine?

The Quest Study Bible suggests the plant that grew overnight may have been a Castor Oil Plant which can reach a height of over twelve feet. However, its quick growth was miraculous--an act of God.

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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.

Four Elijah lessons

Elijan hears God's still small voice - Artist unknown

TODAY'S SPECIAL: 1 Kings 19:1-18

TO CHEW ON: "Then a voice said to him, 'What are you doing here, Elijah?' He replied, 'I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty...' " 1 Kings 19:13,14.

I can understand Elijah's total exhaustion and discouragement. Even three years of famine and defeating the prophets of Baal hadn't won the people over to God. Now he was on the run from Jezebel again. Despite his 100% commitment to God the results were zero and he felt like a total failure.

Elijah's story and the way God dealt with him have lessons for us to learn when:

- We've completed a project.
I'm sure Elijah was glad the three-years of no rain was over and had ended in the grand climax that it did. He'd finished his assignment and finished well. But, as often happens when a project is finished, he experienced a big let-down—especially when the results were not what he'd hoped for.

Lesson: We need to anticipate the let-down that's typical after a project is done.

- We're physically exhausted.
Elijah's run from Jezebel sapped any remaining energy he had. Utterly depleted, his attitude was affected by his physical state of hunger, thirst, and fatigue. Sleep and the bread and water the angel served perked him up considerably.

Lesson: We need to take care of our bodies, eating, drinking, sleeping, and taking work breaks to stay physically and emotionally healthy. Knowing the body's vulnerability in this area also helps us be empathetic with others when they're feeling ill or just tired and hungry.

- We need to hear from God.
Elijah most likely expected to hear from God in the fire, wind, and earthquake. He didn't Instead God spoke in a "still small voice."

Lesson: We can have our ears tuned for that "still small voice" too. Perhaps we'll hear it in the lyrics of a children's song, the kind gestures of a friend or insights from a book we're reading—especially if that book is the Bible.

- We feel our lives have been a failure.
Twice when Elijah talked to God he expressed disappointment in the results of his life (1 Kings 19:4,14) God didn't contradict him or list his successes. Instead, He gave Elijah new assignments, assignments that told him the story wasn't finished and wouldn't be finished with him.

Lesson: We need to remember that we too are only a short chapter in God's story. It didn't start with us and won't end with us. We need to be okay with writing our chapter and leaving the continuation and ending to Him.

PRAYER: Dear God, please help me to use common sense to care for myself physically, and to judge my life's success by my obedience to You, rather than outward successes. Amen.
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Unless noted otherwise, all Scriptures quoted in this meditation are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Anna - anything but pathetic

"Presentation of Jesus in the Temple" by Rembrandt (1627-8)

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Luke 2:22-40


TO CHEW ON: "And coming in that instant she (Anna) gave thanks to the Lord and spoke of Him to all those who looked for redemption in Jerusalem." Luke 2:38

By all kinds of criteria, Anna should have been a pathetic woman:

• She was a descendant of the insignificant tribe of Asher from Galilee. The common saying was, "No prophet can come from Galilee."

• She was childless.

• She was a widow, alone after only seven years of marriage.

"Even today a widow in the Middle East is practically thrown into the grave when her husband dies," says Gien Karssen in Her Name is Woman: Book 1. "The only thing a childless woman in Anna's time could do after the death of her husband was return to the house of her parents to wait for a second husband, or death" - p. 150.

But instead of letting her unenviable position define her, Anna embarked on a new course.

"She didn't flee to isolation and self-pity after the great blow in her life. She didn't become a burden to her relatives. She didn't become a lonely women to whom life has nothing to offer, nor did she become a person whom everyone pitied, but no one knew how to help. And she didn't flee into the past....Anna fled to God. She dedicated her life to serving Him in His Temple. She prayed and fasted. She was willing to give more attention to God than to herself and to give His work the highest priority" Gien Karssen p. 150-151.

Notice how, on this day, God ordered her steps, "And coming in that instant..." The fruit of her dedication and focus was sharp spiritual hearing, keen sensitivity. God had prepared, primed and polished her for this climactic moment of unveiling when she got to see Who every devout Jew longed for — Messiah! Because she was so intimate with God, she recognized. She knew!

She used the moment well, praising God ("broke into an anthem of praise to God" - MSG) and broadcasting the news of this divine Baby to all who were seekers like herself (Luke 22:38).

Maybe like Anna, you have every reason to feel disappointed and cheated by how your life has turned out. If circumstances have taken you off the rails of what you expected, take encouragement from Anna. Be like her and choose to take the focus off yourself and put it on Him. You can let Him shunt you onto a new track of worship, prayer, service and usefulness. And in this way you'll be poised to recognize and grasp all the "instants" that God still has in store for you!


PRAYER: Dear God, Anna's life reminds me of the exchange You promise: beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness. Please help me to cooperate with You in making these substitutions in my life today, and always. Amen.

MORE: Feast of The Presentation

Today is the day the church celebrates the presentation of Jesus in the temple — the Feast of The Presentation.

The liturgy for today begins with this collect:

"Almighty and everliving God, we humbly pray that, as your only-begotten Son was this day presented in the temple, so we may be presented to you with pure and clean hearts by Jesus Christ our Lord; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. 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.

Scripture quotations marked MSG are taken from The Message. Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.

The David method of dealing with disappointment

TODAY'S SPECIAL: 1 Chronicles 17:16-27

TO CHEW ON: "O Lord, there is none like You, nor is there any God besides You, according to all that we have heard with our ears." 1 Chronicles 17:20

David's majestic prayer of 1 Chronicles 17 flows, surprisingly, out of disappointment. If we read the first part of 1 Chronicles 17, we discover that his prayer follows a "No" from God.

David, near the end of his reign, has the thought of building a temple for God to replace the portable tabernacle. He checks with prophet Nathan, who agrees it's a great idea.

But that very night, God comes to Nathan with an opposite message: "Go and tell my servant David, 'Thus says the Lord: "You shall not build Me a house to dwell in."'" 1 Chronicles 17:4

David's reaction to Nathan's message is an excellent example of how we should handle disappointment. It could serve as a template for us.

How David reacts to Nathan's visit:

1. He begins by quieting himself before God: "Then king David went in a sat before the Lord" (vs. 16).

What a great start for a post-disappointment session with God - sitting quietly before Him.

2. He gets himself in perspective: "Who am I O Lord God? And what is my house?" (vs. 16). It's a rhetorical question, to which we imagine the answer, "nobody," and "nothing." Instead of getting himself in a snit about God nixing his plans, David takes himself out of the centre of his world, and puts God there.

We need to do that too as a second step in dealing with disappointment.

3. He focuses on what is, not what isn't: "You have also spoken of your servant's house for a great while to come..." (vs 17).

God's message to David is far from all negative. It contains reminders of God's goodness to his family in the past and promises for the future.

As we sit before God, we can review former promises, experiences and triumphs. And He may impress on us new promises in Bible words, the lyrics of songs, or thoughts from sermons or books.

4. David next meditates on the greatness of God: "O Lord, there is none like You, nor is there any God besides You..." (s. 20).

No matter what situation we're in, we can never go wrong contemplating God — His attributes, His actions in history, His love extended to us in Jesus. (Want to get really excited about God? Get a good book that explains His greatness. I'll never forget how my eyes were opened to this many years ago through my Bible school systematic theology textbook, which explained grand terms like omnipotence, omniscience, immutability, redemption, adoption etc. and with multiple Bible references showed how God is and gives these things!)

5. He aligns himself with God's revealed will: "And now, O Lord, the word which You have spoken...let it be established forever, and do as You have said" (vs. 23).

No arguing, or trying to change God's mind for David. He accepts what God has said and adjusts his attitude to comply with it.

Do we do that as readily? Or do we bog down in thoughts of "if only...what if I tried...maybe if I do...I wish..."

6. Finally, David leaves God's presence full of of faith: "Now You have been pleased to bless the house of Your servant...and it shall be blessed forever" (vs. 27).

What a great way to come out of a session of hashing through a disappointment — with a confident faith in God for the future.

As we review 2010 and anticipate 2011, let's use the David method of dealing with past disappointments, then go into the future knowing that God's plans for us are good.

PRAYER: Dear God, thank You for this prayer of David's. May his spirit of worship, relinquishment, adjustment, and faith in Your will be evident in my life. Amen.

MORE: No and Yes

God's "no" to David was accompanied by a big "yes."

He said of David's "seed": "And I will establish him in My house and in My kingdom forever, and his throne shall be established forever." (1 Chronicles 17:14).

Of course in hindsight, we see the fulfillment of this promise in David's descendant Jesus and the Kingdom of God He represents and establishes.

I wonder how many of God's "no"s to us hold within them bigger "yes's than we ever imagine.