Monthly Archives: January 2013

The Right Side of the Bow

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Friday, January 11, 2013

Today’s Topic: The Bow Covers You

Today’s Text:  Genesis 9:14  And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud.

As many of you know, I’m an avid hunter of deer using a bow. I’m not the best bowhunter, but I love being in the woods. I have a good understanding of deer and I know how to use the bow to harvest them.

One thing I know is that I always want to be on the right side of the bow. I always want it curving towards me and not away from me. When the bow is curving away from me, I am in danger. When the bow curves towards me I am on the safe side and the danger is minimized.

There is a great analogy to life in this simple illustration. It is found in God’s design of the bow – the rainbow. In your mind’s eye you can visualize it right now. Maybe you are even blessed enough to be seeing a double one. Now notice, which way does the curve bend? Towards us, right? We are on the safe side of the bow. Most certainly there are clouds of trouble have invaded your life, but every cloud holds the promise of the bow – a promise of God’s safety and protection. The bow is not aimed
at you, but as an umbrella it covers you.

This morning as I read my daily promise devotional from Charles Spurgeon in his classic book “Faith’s Checkbook,” I discovered this simple yet profound truth.

Just now clouds are plentiful enough, but we are not afraid that the world will be destroyed by a deluge. We see the rainbow often enough to prevent our having any such fears. The covenant which the Lord made with Noah stands fast, and we have no doubts about it. Why, then, should we think that the clouds of trouble, which now darken our sky, will end in our destruction? Let us dismiss such groundless and dishonoring fears. Faith always sees the bow of covenant promise whenever sense sees the cloud of affliction. God has a bow with which He might shoot out His arrows of destruction. But see, it is turned upward! It is a bow without an arrow or a string; it is a bow hung out for show, no longer used for war. It is a bow of many colors, expressing joy and delight, and not a bow blood-red with slaughter or black with anger. Let us be of good courage. Never does God so darken our sky as to leave His covenant without a witness, and even if He did, we would trust Him since He cannot change or lie or in any other way fail to keep His covenant of peace. Until the waters go over the earth again, we shall have no reason for doubting our God.

So if today it appears that you are being hunted, and that you are on the wrong side of the bow, remember God’s promise. The clouds that hunt you are God’s delivery system of His promises, and you are on the right side of His rainbow of blessing and protection.

Pastor John

“It’s Mine”

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Thursday, January 10, 2013

Today’s Topic: Why Do I Keep Doing It?                                          

Today’s Text:  Psalm 119:109 (NIV) Though I constantly take my life in my hands, I will not forget your law.

I love the little games I can play with my grandkids to make them giggle. Some of them only work for a short time, but while they do it is so much fun.

One of the simple ones is what I call “Give and Take.” This is probably the shortest-lived game of them all, and is confined to a very narrow age span. Here are the simple rules:

  • Give the child a small toy, or what’s really fun is to use their blanket or pacifier…sorry, nook.
  • While smiling and with a playful attitude, take the item away from them and say, “It’s mine!”
  • Then IMMEDIATELY give it back to them and say, “It’s yours!”
  • Repeat and repeat until the giggles stop.

I have discovered that after only a couple of repetitions the child is handing the item to me rather than me having to take it from them. Then after handing it to me, they are reaching out to take it back. That’s when the fun really begins, because they have decided to participate in the game.

After a few months the window of opportunity closes. Not because they tire of the game, but because the desires of the human heart take over. “It’s mine” totally dominates the little one’s mind as “It’s yours” becomes an unacceptable option. As they grow, the parents are faced with a constant challenge to teach “It’s yours.”

I wonder how much easier the teaching would be if “It’s yours” was consistently modeled by the teacher?

  • Are my possessions yours? Can you borrow and use anything I have when you need it?
  • Is my time yours? Can you have my time anytime you have need of me?
  • Are my plans subject to yours, or are do your plans always have to fit into mine?
  • Are my desires and dreams yours, or do I reserve the right to fulfill self first?

But let’s go one step further and look beyond the horizontal relationships we have with family and friends, and let’s see how this applies to our vertical relationship with Jesus Christ. You see, the Psalmist was admitting that no matter how many times he had surrendered his life to the Lordship of Jesus, he kept taking it back. He was playing the “Give and Take” game.

“It’s yours.”

“No wait, It’s mine!”

“That didn’t work out, so here, it’s yours again.”

Unfortunately, that conversation usually ends up with our lives being ours. We constantly take life into our own hands. We claim to have faith in Jesus Christ to bring fullness to life, but when the first circumstance arises that seems to contradict fullness we jump up and reach out and take back what we had given away.

Why do we do that? Does it ever really turn out all that well when we do?

From now on, imagine yourself with a nook in your mouth. Everywhere you go you have to have it. You have it in your mouth while you are driving. You have it in your mouth at the checkout lane in the grocery store, and have to take it out every time the clerk asks you a question. It’s constantly falling on the ground while you talk to people because you are also reaching for your wallet, credit card, or keys. Your attention is immediately diverted from whatever you were doing or saying because your nook is so important to you that you have to get it back immediately. You don’t even care if it got dirty, and it’s popped back into your mouth as soon as you find it. “Ahhhh, I can relax again because I’m in control of my nook.”

No, your nook is in control of you. And so is your life if you haven’t ever sincerely said, “It’s yours!”

Pastor John

 

 

Be Spontaneous!

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Tuesday, January 08, 2013

Today’s Topic: Spontaneous Praise

Today’s Text:  Psalm 119:108 (ESV)    Accept my freewill offerings of praise, O LORD…

Something spontaneous happened during worship on Sunday. It brought great joy to my heart. It was a fulfillment of today’s Scripture verse. I wish it would happen more, not only in church, but in everyday life.

Our church is incredibly blessed with men and women who voluntarily lead us in worship every Sunday. They are truly gifts directly from God. Are they perfect? Of course not. Are their hearts right with the Lord, and are they filled with the Spirit of God? Absolutely. I thank God for them all!

Well, Sunday was exceptional. We started by singing a contemporary version of the great hymn To God Be the Glory. My childhood love of the classic hymns of the faith was revived as we loudly praised the Lord for the great things He has done. We were immediately taken to the greatest thing God ever did when the next several songs directed our attention to the cross where Jesus died for our sins. The power of sin has been broken because Jesus gave His life away. As we sang You gave, you gave your life away for me it brought tears to my eyes. With simple quietness the next song began.

In Christ alone my hope is found, He is my light, my strength, my song;
this Cornerstone, this solid Ground, firm through the fiercest drought and storm.
What heights of love, what depths of peace, when fears are stilled, when strivings cease!
My Comforter, my All in All, here in the love of Christ I stand.

As we sang the intensity increased. The power of the song began to move our hearts as we praised and worship the Lord Jesus Christ.

In Christ alone! who took on flesh Fulness of God in helpless babe!
This gift of love and righteousness Scorned by the ones he came to save:
Till on that cross as Jesus died, The wrath of God was satisfied –
For every sin on Him was laid; Here in the death of Christ I live.

By the time we got to the third verse, there was a growing sense of enthusiasm that permeated the air of the sanctuary. We had sung this song enough times that we knew the celebration that was about to break out. With quietness we sang There in the ground His body lay, Light of the world by darkness slain:

Then the cymbols started to build. The bass started to rumble. The guitar started to amplify. The keyboard pounded out the praise of the resurrection. And when we completed the next line – Then bursting forth in glorious Day, Up from the grave he rose again! – the congregation erupted in applause. It was spontaneous praise, and it wasn’t bad for a conservative Baptist church.

As we clapped, and some shouted, we completed the song.

And as He stands in victory Sin’s curse has lost its grip on me,
For I am His and He is mine – Bought with the precious blood of Christ.

No guilt in life, no fear in death, This is the power of Christ in me;
From life’s first cry to final breath. Jesus commands my destiny.
No power of hell, no scheme of man, Can ever pluck me from His hand;
Till He returns or calls me home, Here in the power of Christ I’ll stand

As the band played the final chord, and the voices of praise faded into silence before the throne of God, a spontaneous voice shouted from the front row of the congregation – “No Condemnation!”

It was our dear sister Cindy, seated in her wheel chair to which she is confined permanently unless she is sleeping in bed. This woman of God who despite all of her physical ailments continues to allow herself to be carried up the stairs of our current facility by several men and wheeled to the front row understands that in Christ alone she is eternal forgiven and free. And she’s not afraid to shout it.

In today’s Scripture verse, the word “Freewill” is defined in the original Hebrew as “Spontaneous”.

Oh how the Lord is ready to receive your spontaneous offerings of praise today!

Turn the Light On!

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Monday, January 07, 2013

Today’s Topic: Turn the Light On                                                      

Today’s Text:  Psalm 119:105 (ESV)  Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.

What a great day it was yesterday. Worship at church was so Spirit-filled and Christ-centered. People fed on the Word of God and were satisfied. Fellowship with the family of God was sweet. It was a tremendous start to a wonderful day.

After arriving at home following a very nice lunch with my incredible wife, I quickly changed into my hunting clothes for the final afternoon of the bowhunting season. I spent two-and-a-half hours on a tree stand surrounded by multiple trails in the snow. But whatever group of deer made those trails, they weren’t there yesterday. But a day in the woods is so refreshing.

On the way home I called my wife and she suggested I bring home an evening treat of ice cream. I obliged, of course, and when I pulled into the garage I set the treats outside so they would stay cold while I put all of my hunting gear away. Then, before removing my boots, I set the treats on the stairs in the garage. While I was removing my coat, the light on the garage door opener turned off. I had not turned on any other lights. The garage was pitch black, and I’m several steps away from the light switch. I knew exactly where it was, and knew how to get to it without running into anything, but instead, I continued to remove my coveralls and my boots.

Having completed that task in the dark, I now had a decision to make. Should I go turn on the lights, move the treats inside, turn on lights that are controlled from inside the garage, go back into the garage and shut off the other lights and then return to the house, or could I make it all happen without the lights on? My philosophy, which doesn’t always work out for the best and sometimes causes bigger problems, has always been to do more in fewer trips, so I chose to do all of this in the dark.

Now some of you are already letting your imaginations run away with you. You are picturing me stumbling on something as I work my way to the steps, falling on the steps, and spilling the ice cream treats all over the garage. You would be wrong. You see, I left out one detail. I had not yet shut the garage door.  From almost a half mile away across the road from my house, a car had its headlights on. The light was unhindered by any obstruction in the open farm field between me and the car. The light, while very faint, was just enough for my already-adjusted eyes to see a faint reflection of white cups on the steps. I walked toward that spot, picked up the treats, went up the steps, and pushed the garage door button to not only close the door but to also turn on the light again. All was safe.

Sometimes we feel like we are living in the dark. We know there are things we want somewhere within our reach, but we can’t seem to find them. We are afraid to even try to find them for fear that we will hurt ourselves or damage something or someone else. In our pride we think we can manage in the dark, and the memory of a few successful adventures in the dark inspires us to try more.

But there is a light that is always shining, even if it is so far away that we can only see faint images around us. It is the light of God’s Word in our hearts. We have hidden it there so that we won’t stumble, and God is faithful so that even when we choose to try stuff in the dark, He keeps His light on. If we choose, the light could be brighter, and it would be better if we chose that option right away. But my choices do not stop God’s light from shining.

Somewhere in your darkness there is a light shining. It is God’s light, and once He has turned it on in your life it cannot be turned off. We can push it far away by choosing to surround ourselves with darkness, but we cannot turn off the light.

In your darkness today, look carefully for the light that is shining. Then walk to it. It will become your path, and soon it will be bright enough to guide every step.

Pastor John