Tag Archive | Praising God

Running to the Lord in our Hopelessness

On May 31st, my husband and I had planned to join some friends from our church to celebrate the seventh birthday of a dear friend. But I woke up with extreme pain and swelling in my left knee and my husband ended up going without me. This was the first of a long list of changes in my plans that is still continuing. I now know a little more of what is causing the pain, but four months later I’m no closer to an answer concerning what to do about it.

Each path we have tried to go down has led to a dead end. First, knee replacement surgery wasn’t recommended because of the extensive nerve pain in my knee, which could potentially be made worse from any knee surgery. Cortisone injections did nothing to relieve the pain. And the latest disappointment, after two sessions of physical therapy the pain and swelling in my knee became so bad this weekend that my therapist is meeting to morning to talk with the therapy supervisor to make a decision about whether it’s even safe to continue the exercises she has been teaching me.

Today, my heart has been asking one question. When life with chronic illness is marked by one disappointment after another, when every recommended treatment option leads to another dead end, what are we to do? How do we hold onto our hope in the Lord?

Let’s look at the life of a man in the Bible who experienced overwhelming fear and hopelessness and see if there are any lessons we can learn. The story is found in 1 Kings 19:1-8.

“Now Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. Then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, “So may the gods do to me and even more, if I do not make your life as the life of one of them by tomorrow about this time.” And he was afraid and arose and ran for his life and came to Beersheba, which belongs to Judah, and left his servant there. But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree; and he requested for himself that he might die, and said, “It is enough; now, O LORD, take my life, for I am not better than my fathers.” He lay down and slept under a juniper tree; and behold, there was an angel touching him, and he said to him, “Arise, eat.” Then he looked and behold, there was at his head a bread cake baked on hot stones, and a jar of water. So he ate and drank and lay down again. The angel of the LORD came again a second time and touched him and said, “Arise, eat, because the journey is too great for you.” So he arose and ate and drank, and went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb, the mountain of God.”
‭‭1 Kings‬ ‭19:1-8‬ ‭NASB‬‬

So what did Elijah do in this passage? Other than feeling sorry for himself and asking the Lord to take his life, little worth mentioning. He ran away, but not from God. He was honest with the Lord about where he was emotionally, which was a place where he had lost all hope. And then he laid down and slept, only awakening when an angel touched him twice and provided food and water. Elijah was passive, all the work was done by the Lord. Elijah simply received from the Lord and was strengthened to continue the journey.

When chronic illness or any of the other problems we face in this life strip away our last bit of hope, all God asks of us is to come to Him. Remember, He made us with emotions, and therefore he knows best how to deal with them. If you are battling hopelessness today because of difficult circumstances that you can see no way out of, don’t pretend everything is okay. Run to the Lord and be honest with Him about where you are. Let Him meet the needs you have, and rest in His provision. He will strengthen you to face tomorrow.

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Everything Beautiful Bible Reading Plan, Week 3

Mar17

Since the recent Proverbs 31 Ministries Online Bible Study on 1 John, one verse has come to mind repeatedly. 1 John 3:1 in The Voice translation says, “Consider the kind of extravagant love the Father has lavished on us—He calls us children of God! It’s true; we are His beloved children.”

This week’s Everything Beautiful Bible Reading Challenge begins with a passage that tells us about one woman’s act of love that could rightly be described as an act of extravagant love.

Day 11: Matthew 26:6-13

The woman in this passage, identified by John in his gospel as Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus, was first described in Luke 10:39 as one “who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said.” Her heart was filled with love for the Lord, and what takes place in today’s passage springs forth out of that love.

Jesus had explained to His close followers that He would be crucified, buried and raised from the dead on the third day. Mary had embraced this truth that the Lord Jesus was on His way to the cross, and her desire was to do one final act of expressing her love for the Lord, through anointing Him in anticipation of His burial. This was a costly act of worship, the account in John 12 tells us it this expensive perfume was worth a full year’s wages. But because of her love for Jesus, the cost didn’t matter.

The disciples, especially Judas, were critical of Mary’s act of adoration. Their response: “Why this waste? This perfume could have been sold at a high price and the money given to the poor.” (Matthew 26:8-9) Jesus’ words are a sharp contrast to these.

“Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful thing to me. The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me. When she poured this perfume on my body, she did it to prepare me for burial. Truly I tell you, wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.” (Matthew‬ ‭26:10-13‬ ‭NIV)‬‬

Day 12: Romans 10:11-16

As believers in Christ, we are called to not just be disciples who are growing personally in our faith but also to share the message of salvation with others to start them down the same path. Are you making an effort to take the great message of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ to others who don’t know Him? If so, God’s Word says you have “beautiful feet.”

Day 13: Acts 3:1-10

If you’ve been a Christian for many years, this is probably a familiar passage. But the Holy Spirit loves to give us new insights as we spend time daily in God’s Word. The words following the actual miracle stood out to me this morning, “and (he) entered the temple with them (Peter and John).”

It was the hour of prayer, and Peter and John were on their way into the temple when they saw a man who was lame from birth being carried to the entrance where he habitually spent his days asking alms of those entering the temple. According to several extra-biblical sources, this was as close to the temple as the lame or blind were allowed to go. (Scripture does not actually say this, but in Leviticus 21:16-23 we are told that the offspring of Aaron who were blind or lame were not allowed to serve as altar priests, offering sacrifices and food offerings to God.)

Doubtless, Peter and John had seen him many times before, but this day was different. At the man’s request for alms, Peter stopped and spoke with him. The man was hoping for silver or gold to meet his material needs, and he probably had a sense of disappointment at Peter’s first words, “I have no silver and gold.” But Peter’s next words changed his life. “But what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!”

If you’re interested in a more in-depth article on this Scripture, check out my full post at: https://readywriterbr.wordpress.com/2018/03/13/walking-and-leaping-and-praising-god/

Day 14: Isaiah 61:1-11

I love this passage that not only speaks of what Jesus came to do – to proclaim good news to the poor, bind up the brokenhearted, proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, and to proclaim the favor of the Lord – but also of what He has done for us. All of this and so much more was accomplished at Jesus’ first coming. Because of what He did, we are now clothed with a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair, with garments of salvation and righteousness. How can we not rejoice on what He has done for us! We are His bride, and when He returns we will be a part of the Marriage Supper of the Lamb.

Day 15: 1 Peter 1:20-25

Isaiah spoke of a voice of one crying out in the wilderness with these words:

“A voice says, ‘Cry!’ And I said, ‘What shall I cry?’ All flesh is grass, and all its beauty is like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower fades when the breath of the Lord blows on it; surely the people are grass. The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.” Isaiah‬ ‭40:6-8‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Quoting these verses, Peter reminds us as believers in Christ Jesus that this world and the things in it are not to be our focus. Everything in this world will eventually fade away. Only God’s Word, His will, and His work will last forever. Are you putting your focus on the temporary or on the eternal?

Day 16: Psalm 135:1-7

As I read today’s passage which encourages us to praise the Lord, a different verse from Psalms came to mind. Psalm 33:1 (NASB) says, “Sing for joy in the LORD, O you righteous ones; Praise is becoming to the upright.” Praise is becoming to the upright, because it acknowledges that the Lord is good, that He is greater than all gods, that He and he alone is the true God. To sing praises to God’s name is to commend Him for who He is and to thank Him for all He has done. I’d say that makes praise a beautiful thing

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Day 17: Job 5:8-18

As I read the final passage for this week and prayed about how to tie all of these verses together, an old hymn I haven’t heard for many years came to mind. Take time to read the words and as another week comes to an end may they be your prayer.

There shall be showers of blessing:

This is the promise of love;

There shall be seasons refreshing,

Sent from the Savior above.

Refrain:

Showers of blessing,

Showers of blessing we need:

Mercy-drops round us are falling,

But for the showers we plead.

There shall be showers of blessing,

Precious reviving again;

Over the hills and the valleys,

Sound of abundance of rain.

There shall be showers of blessing;

Send them upon us, O Lord;

Grant to us now a refreshing,

Come, and now honor Thy Word.

There shall be showers of blessing:

Oh, that today they might fall,

Now as to God we’re confessing,

Now as on Jesus we call!

There shall be showers of blessing,

If we but trust and obey;

There shall be seasons refreshing,

If we let God have His way.

“Walking and Leaping and Praising God”

Mar13

For the last couple months, I’ve been using Rachel Wojo’s monthly Bible Reading Challenges to put together a weekly blog post, daily adding a brief reflection and graphic on that day’s passage. I still plan to continue doing this, but as I was reading today’s passage from the Everything Beautiful Bible Reading Challenge, God opened my eyes to some encouraging truths and I felt compelled to go beyond my short entry for the weekly post and do a separate blog post.

Today’s Everything Beautiful passage is found in Acts 3:1-10 and tells of one of the miracles during the early years of the church. It took place at the gate of the temple that was called the Beautiful Gate, probably so named because of it’s ornate decorations, but commentators are divided about the actual location of the gate. It was apparently one of the gates or doors through which the Jewish men who came to worship entered, but it’s exact identity is of little importance. The emphasis in this passage is on what happened here.

If you’ve been a Christian for many years, this is probably a familiar passage. But the Holy Spirit loves to give us new insights as we spend time daily in God’s Word. This morning, the words following the actual miracle stood out to me, “and (he) entered the temple with them (Peter and John).”

As I read these words, I sensed the Holy Spirit speaking to my heart that this was of great significance to this newly-healed lame man. So I did some research to confirm what I was sensing. If the lame man had never before been allowed to enter the temple, was this somehow a case of looking down on those who had less than perfect bodies? As a woman with a long list of chronic illnesses and disability as a result of an automobile accident and actively involved in ministry to others with chronic illness, this definitely had my attention.

Were the blind and lame restricted by God from entering the temple, forced to stay outside the temple gates because of their infirmities? Scripture does tell us (in Leviticus 21:16-23) that the blind and lame were excluded from serving as altar priests, presenting sacrifices and food offerings to God. But there are no specific verses that teach the physically disabled were to be banned from the tabernacle or temple. So we know this was not God’s plan.

Yet there are extra-biblical sources that seem to indicate this was common practice by the time of Jesus. The fact that the man was at the gate, which Peter and John were about to enter, and not inside the temple, seems to confirm this. If so, it came about either through Jewish tradition or the misreading of Scriptures such as Leviticus 21 and 2 Samuel 5:8, where David is quoted as saying on the day he was anointed as king, “The ‘blind and lame’ will not enter the house.” But this could not refer to the temple, since it had not been built at that time, and in context doesn’t even appear to refer to the physically blind and lame.

We do know, according to Matthew 21:14 and other passages, that Jesus healed the lame and blind in the temple. This shows they were at least able to go into the court of the Gentiles, and it along with the many healings during His earthly ministry show us Jesus’ heart was to include those who were afflicted or disabled.

If the lame and otherwise afflicted were actually banned from the temple, as many believe, when the previously lame man who had been healed entered the temple with Peter and John he was probably as excited about this as he was about being able to walk. No wonder he was “walking and leaping and praising God!

Today, regardless of what was true at the time this miracle took place, we can be confident that chronic illness neither separates us from God’s presence not makes us unqualified for ministry. Jesus’ death and resurrection instituted a new way of life, a life described in Hebrews 10:19-20 as “the new and living way.”

“Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh,”

We are no longer under the law. We now live by grace through faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Romans 6:14 clearly states that we are not under the law but under grace. Why is this true? Because one of the things Jesus came to do was to fulfill the law (see Matthew 5:17).

“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,” (Ephesians‬ ‭2:8‬ ESV)‬‬

“But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.” (Galatians‬ ‭5:18‬ ‭ESV‬‬)

And that’s such good news that we, like the once-lame man of Acts 3, should be “walking and leaping and praising God!”