A Time for Reading, Trusting, Obeying, and Camping?

What trouble lurks behind the active thoughts in your mind? What worry jumps at you in your sleep and yells "Got you!"? For each of us, we could likely quickly call to mind two or three issues in our lives that snatch from us peace or a sense of settled purpose or contentment or all of the above. What do you do to combat the worries, the fears, the doubts, the difficulties that want first place in your life?

Some of us work harder, run farther, out-perform others, and turn to the promise of success in diligence. It is not wrong to work diligently. But, when Paul says, "Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men," (Colossians 3:23), that's not the same thing as saying, "If you work hard, your life will be complete, and you'll be happy because you will find the success and satisfaction you are looking for." No, there is a divide between God's version of success and American can-do-ism.

The Boy-King Grows Up (and Down)

 How often do we see a good leader listen to bad advice and make foolish decisions? Sadly, companies and empires have collapsed when good leaders make bad choices. Praise God He has decided that in His eternal kingdom, He will directly reign over His people. King Jesus never listens to bad advice, as He showed by conquering the devil's temptations.

Long Live the King (a Grisly Story of Blood and Victory)

Real history or real experience never transpires in tidy pieces. Movies and stories follow a plot line, but often our experience feels like there is no plot, no progression, no resolution. As a Christian, I believe there is a plot because there is an Author writing His Story. But, that does not make me so naive or pompous as to think I know from day to day what the Author is doing and why. God is bringing His story to His desired ends, but that doesn't mean I can explain everything. Instead, I trust that He can explain what He is writing.

One odd place that I get comfort is in reading the chaotic accounts from long ago. The saga of Athaliah and Joash is one of those accounts. See 2 Chronicles 22-23 for the Bible's record of these events.

Good Census, Bad Census

Even though 2020 has included many challenges in the United States of America, and the world, the US is conducting a census of her 330 million citizens. Countries take such information for numerous reasons from planning on tax revenues to assessing potential economic strengths and weaknesses. Knowing the population helps numerous facets of society stay organized.

But, could there be a census taken for ungodly reasons? Yes. Consider how this story of in the life of David begins...

When Life Feels Rootless (Intro to 1 Chronicles)

Have you ever struggled with feeling rootless, unmoored, drifting, purposeless, or confused about where your life is going? 

When Good Becomes Bad

Does God want you to be happy? How you answer this question will show a lot about your worldview - what you believe about reality and your place in this world. If you say, “Of course not” or “that doesn’t matter” then you will embrace a practically materialistic worldview in which you work to be the master of your own fate. This sounds liberating, but in fact it is crushing. Your shoulders were not meant to carry the weight of creating your own soul-satisfying purpose in this world. Any design we concoct cannot measure up to the deep yearning of our hearts for happiness.

Echoes of the Miraculous

Jesus did many amazing miracles, each showing more of who He is – the Son of God. And, they did more than this, they proved that Jesus not only was filled with the Spirit of God, He is the Spirit of God.

 

Untrustworthy Steps for Discerning God's Will

In the excellent movie Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Indiana must overcome three challenges or booby traps to get to the holy grail. The second challenge features a room of paved stones with letters engraved on them. Some of the stones are supported, while others have no support and give way to reveal an empty chasm beneath. Indiana must choose the right stones to walk across the room.

Sometimes, discerning the will of God can feel like this room of paved stones. We must choose the right steps for discerning God's will, or we can step confidently only to find ourselves dangling precariously before some peril. Ok, stretching the analogy a bit for dramatic effect. But seriously, how can we know which steps or which methods are trustworthy and which are untrustworthy for discerning the will of God?