Who Said You Were Exempt

Can anyone say with honesty that they welcome trouble? I certainly can not. For trouble is an equal opportunist. It cuts across all cultures, socioeconomic statuses,  and races. Money can’t shoo all trouble away. And even our profession of faith as Christ followers does not give us an all-exclusive pass from trouble.

Ezekiel serves as a prime example that you can be doing all the right things and still bad things happen. He was serving God, proclaiming His truths, yet he still received troubling news.

“Son of man, with one blow I will take away your dearest treasure. Yet you must not show any sorrow at her death. Do not weep; let there be no tears. Groan silently, but let there be no wailing at her grave. Do not uncover your head or take off your sandals. Do not perform the usual rituals of mourning or accept any food brought to you by consoling friends.” Ezekiel 24:16-17

Now putting myself in Ezekiel’s shoes, I wonder what my true response would be. Would I be tempted to whine about how unfair it all seemed? Would I continue to proclaim His truth despite my personal situation? I do not have to look back very far to see how I have failed similar tests. Unlike Ezekiel, I haven’t experienced the loss of a spouse but I have lost things as a believer. And I must say there have been times that I was a very sore loser.  My commitment level waned. My confessions of certain truths were less than normal. But that was not the case with Ezekiel, instead he proclaimed to the people the next morning, and in the evening his wife died but he still did everything God said.

Reading further in the passage, you will find that God was using him as a example for the people so that they might know that God is the sovereign Lord. Granted Ezekiel had the privilege of knowing before hand that this trouble was coming, which we don’t always have. But in the Word it tells us that in this life we will have trouble. Can God trust us (me) to be a proper reflection of Him even during troubling times? Will we (I) remain steadfast in our obedience, love, confession and serving?

When Loving You is Wrong

Image Courtesy of Morguefile

I remember the lyrics of song that said if loving you is wrong, I don’t want to be right. Kind  of sounds like a song a hopeless (or should a say reckless) romantic might sing. I have had my own encounter of loving when it was wrong. And wouldn’t you know I found myself in the Word of God as I read I Kings 11. My sneaky suspicion was confirmed that I was not the only one to find themselves on the wrong side of love.
Solomon-the wisest person in the world and a king no doubt-found himself in a precarious position. He had a thing for foreign women. Even after receiving clear instructions to avoid them.

The LORD had clearly instructed his people not to intermarry with those nations, because the women they married would lead them to worship their gods. I Kings 11:2a

Solomon was a man well versed in God’s Word and man full of wisdom.

Yet Solomon insisted on loving them anyway. I Kings 11:2b

I guess he wasn’t willing to give them up so he could be right. Some how he consider them worth the cost of being wrong.
Stay tuned as I explore the cost he paid for loving when it’s wrong.

It’s Ok to Begin Again

^{Are there any unfinished projects lying around your house? Or what about unachieved dreams stashed away in the recesses of your heart? If you’re anything like me, you’ve at least once started a project with great zeal and enthusiasm only to have the incomplete pieces stashed away in a closet.}

^{Well you and I are not the only ones, who have ever done such. In, Ezra 4:25-6:22, we find the Temple of God in Jerusalem still incomplete and all work has ceased on this ordained and worthy project. The rebuilding had been ordained by God and commissioned by King Cyrus but it encountered some interference and opposition that halted all progress.}

²⁴ That put a stop to the work on The Temple of God in Jerusalem. Nothing more was done until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.

^1-2Meanwhile the prophets Haggai and Zechariah son of Iddo were preaching to the Jews in Judah and Jerusalem in the authority of the God of Israel who ruled them. And so Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and Jeshua son of Jozadak started again, rebuilding The Temple of God in Jerusalem. The prophets of God were right there helping them.  Ezra 4:24-5:2

^{After hearing the prophets Haggai and Zechariah prophesy, Zerrubbabel and Jeshua were moved to action and they started again to rebuild the Temple of God. Nope, this wasn’t the first time they had made the decision to obey the voice of God. They did it before and failed but something about what the prophets said (the Bible doesn’t even go into the specifics of what the prophets said) stirred up their faith enough to begin the work again. When faced with starting something again,the fear of failing again tends to immobilize me. But these men were moved from their inactive state to one of purposeful activity. All by hearing two men speak. Which leads me to believe that at times God uses people to spur us back into action. You might not be prophesying but something you shared in a blog post or conversation shared among associates can be a word spoken in season for someone else that moves them from an inactive state.}

^{Did they meet some opposition after deciding to begin again? YES. Will you or I meet some opposition/interference when we choose to begin again? YES, we will. Opposition or interference is often wrapped up in the subtle sayings of others questioning if this is something you really should be undertaking. At other times opposition is clothed in the soft whispers of our voice that speaks doubt. The good news is that neither has to stop us from finishing the project. Further reading in Ezra, shows that the exact people who were coming to bring distraction from the building were the same people who were commanded by King Darius to ensure that the people of Judah had everything they needed to complete the rebuilding.}

^{Whether it’s been 2 days, 2 months or 2 years since you first started your quest to build your “temple” or dream, you can simply start again.}

Lost & Found

Do you ever loose your keys? It seems I’m always in search of mine. My family tells me I should tie them around my neck. Even my purse seems to enjoy playing tricks on me by swallowing up my keys. And my niece and nephews still poke fun about the time we were in Memphis and I was going berserk about my keys when I was actually holding them in my hand.  Yep, my hand-imagine that. Searching for something you know you’ve lost is very different from discovering a thing you weren’t even aware you’d managed to loose in the first place.

Recently I read 2 Kings 22-23. While cleaning up the temple a priceless treasure was discovered-God’s Word. It seemed a little odd to me that finding the Word of God in His Temple would be something unexpected. Upon reading the Words, King Josiah learned that his nation had been living against the Lord’s command. The King’s actions gave me some key principles when finding something I might have lost that’s valuable.

1. Don’t just stick a label on it and place it on the shelf again:  After finding this treasure, the king didn’t simply store it in an unforgettable place.
2. Use what you found: His discovery moved him to action-first he read it. Had it read to the people.
3. Clear out the clutter: He removed distractions by tearing down the idols in the land so that he and the people would be more inclined to focus on this rediscovered treasure.
4. Seek God’s direction: He sought Godly godly counsel.

Have you ever lost something and forgot you ever had it? I have and I’m not just referring to tangible stuff. In some ways, I lost who I was. Things I once adored no longer even crept into my mind. I forgot that I ever had a passion for it. However, a couple weeks ago, after hosting a youth recognition day, my sister made a statement-“you’re coming back to your old self”. It was just a statement made in passing but some how it stuck with me.  The event struck up some old creativity and passion that I had long forgotten existed and cease to use. But, as I was focusing on the scripture passages, I gleaned some application for right were I am. Isn’t that what the Bible is for anyway?

Now that the spark was reignited, it’s my job to keep the flames a burning. Not tuck it in a cute little box as a memorial but to put it to use as much as possible.

Have you tucked away some gifting, talent, revelation, dream or inspiration? Perhaps it’s time you dust away the cobwebs and let the wind of the spirit blow on it again.

Lord, forgive me for neglecting to tend to and realize the value of the treasure you’ve given to me. Now that I’ve rediscovered it, Lord, show me what your plan is for it. And teach me how to use it so that it might bring you glory. In Jesus name. Amen.

Photo Credit: here

Quiet Confidence

In Saturday’s post I shared how I was reflecting on Isaiah 30:15, particularly the part about in quietness and confidence is my strength. Today, I wanted to share some questions and insights I received while continuing to meditate.

What is it that one needs to have confidence in?

• That God exists
• That God is who He says He is
• That He can do what He says He can
• That not only can He do it but He’s willing ( this is important because a person may have the ability to do a thing but has no desire or willingness to do so)
• That God is concerned about you (yep, the same God that holds the universe together is interested in you)
• That He is able to hold things together even when it appears that things are falling apart

When do I need to exhibit quietness?

• When tempted to continue to argue your point, choose quietness instead.
• When you would worry and be stressed out, quiet your mind instead.
• When you be tempted to run and hide, quiet your steps and be still instead.
• When it would be easy to complain, quiet the dis-ease with thanksgiving and praise.

Do You Have the Right Attire?

While reading Matthew 22 regarding the wedding banquet, I took particular notice to vs. 12-15 “Friend, he asked how is it that you are without wedding clothes? And the man had no reply. Then the King said to his aides. Bind him hand and foot and throw him out into the outer darkness, where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.” I don’t know if I’ve ever read those passages of scriptures before. It seemed odd to me that the King would be surprised that one of the guests didn’t have on the proper wedding clothes since the invitation was unexpected. He goes on to have the man tied and thrown into outer darkness. After meditating on it little more, I realized that in fact all kinds of people (good & bad) had been invited. But after receiving the invitation to come to the King’s banquet, I imagined that they changed their garments just like we want to look extra nice when going to some place special. Yet, this person didn’t bother to change but just showed up to see what was going on. He didn’t even reply when the King asked why he was improperly dressed. If he had answered, the King being the King, could have easily obtained the proper attire. The Spirit says some people really don’t want to change their garments (i.e. their deeds, thinking, attitudes) but being the bride of Christ or part of the Kingdom requires a change. He’s called us to put on the new nature of Christ and put away bitterness, wrath, anger, malice, evil speaking. For the areas in our lives that we lack the proper clothing, all that’s necessary is to acknowledge it to our King, who is the only one able to bring about lasting change in our lives. Failure to do so can result in us spending an eternity in outer darkness.