In the dark

I have a friend who bugs me regularly about how rarely I blog. I tell her, it would be easier if someone wrote back to me. As it is, I often feel as if I'm writing to myself!

So hey, are you out there?

I spent the last two weeks getting ready to help my son move to Loma Linda, California. I've painted his room, gone through the stuff stored there, moved some to the basement, taken some to the Goodwill and had the Salvation Army truck come by. I found mice tracks in my pantry (yuck!), and put new shelves in the basement. What a busy end of summer! Last week, we drove to California together and set up his apartment.

But the Word of God draws me in. I'm reading Exodus again, and I've caught something I never noticed before. It happens at the part where Moses leads the folks out of Egypt and they end up camped against the Red Sea; then the Egyptian army comes after them. Picture this. As the sun sets, they set up camp. On one side is the sea. The Jews pitch their tents, get ready to cook their dinner, and find the kids. Then someone shouts. Fingers point. Screams come from the outer rim of the camp.

The Egyptians are coming.

Terror starts to spread. Panic runs through the camp. Then suddenly, the "angel of God, who had been leading the people of Israel, moved to a position behind them and the pillar of cloud also moved around behind. The pillar of cloud settled between the Israelite and Egyptian camps." (Exodus 12:19) God steps in to protect them from the enemy.

Then, as most of us know, the Israelites cross the Red Sea on dry ground.

But have you ever noticed that they cross at NIGHT?

They do. Check it out.

"So as the sun began to rise, Moses raised his hand over the sea. The water roared back into its usual lace, and the LORD swept the terrified Egyptians into the surging currents."

The Jews were over the sea and onto dry ground BEFORE the sun rose.

They crossed at night.

Important? Maybe not. But it seems to me that many times, God does his most miraculous work when things are darkest. And as God worked, (stacking up the water) he asked his people to walk through the provision he made for them. In the dark.

How many times have you walked through a dark place on dry ground?

Has he healed your marriage? Blessed you with a new attitude? Healed your body? Brought you through grief? Has he given you a new job? Taught you how to manage your money? Given you confidence, even in the face of a tough economy?

God is so different from the world where we live. In modern movies, the worst always happens at night.

But in God's stories, He always shows up when things look darkest! When the sun goes down, look for God. He is behind you, protecting you, working on your behalf. When he opens up the way, walk in it.

God shows up in the dark!

Bette

A surprise in Matthew

I've just finished Matthew again, and once again, I found something I've not seen before.

Look for yourself. Matthew 28:17

"When they saw him, they worshiped him -- but some of them doubted."

After Jesus death, the eleven disciples went to Galilee, (just as Jesus had instructed them through the women who had visited the empty tomb). There, they saw Him, the risen Lord, exactly as He planned.

But some of them doubted.

Can you believe it? These guys had hung out for at least three years together. They'd eaten and slept and ministered together day in and day out. If anyone should have recognized the risen Lord, it should have been these guys. After all, these guys were the inner circle.

And after his death, they trot off to Galilee, where they see the risen Christ, in person. And some of them -- doubted?

What is that about?

I don't know exactly. But I do have some thoughts. For one, isn't it interesting that Matthew could have left this detail out? It would have made more sense (if he were writing propaganda, anyway) to leave it out. Wouldn't you? If you were writing simply to convince someone of a false story, wouldn't you tell them that "everyone believed?"

But Matthew doesn't sacrifice accuracy for the sake of believability. I think that small detail tells us that he must have had a commitment to truth, and thus, we can conclude that he has told the WHOLE truth to the best of his ability. Matthew told us even the difficult details.

Secondly, I think it tells us something about human nature. How many times have we thought, "If only I'd have walked with Jesus, this whole faith thing would be so easy. I wouldn't struggle with doubt."

Wrong.

Doubt is part of our walk. Not because we believe in something false, or because we are stupid and foolish, but because we believe in something that is completely impossible. What kind of idiot believes that a dead man can be raised? It's impossible.

We have to acknowledge that simple fact. It IS ABSOLUTELY impossible.

But with God, impossible things are quite possible.

And sometimes, even in the face of those quite impossible things, we may pinch ourselves, thinking, "Can this be true?"

It isn't always easy to believe. But of course, if it were easy, it wouldn't take faith.

The take away? When you doubt, don't beat yourself up; remember the eleven. They struggled with doubt. You are in very good company. But do remember this:

Jesus said in John chapter 20:29,

"You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who haven't seen me and believe anyway."

Be blessed and believe.

Bette

What about Consequences?

In Matthew 24, Jesus tells his disciples that not one stone of the Jerusalem temple would be left on top of another.

Why? That answer is found in Matt 23, beginning in verse 37. The reason, in essence, is because the Jews would refuse to see and accept Jesus as the Messiah-- the promised one.

Yesterday, I was listening as a Biblical expositor explained that the real sin in Genesis was that Eve would not believe in the goodness of God. The speaker was telling us that we should trust God's restrictions to be representations of his LOVE for us. He does not say "No" lightly.

But is that all that is there? I don't think so.

"You surely will not die," the serpent told her.

Wasn't the real issue that Satan tried to convince Eve that there would be NO consequence for her disobedience? And wasn't Jesus telling Jerusalem that they would suffer for their rebellion?

I think so.

Not long ago, I tried to warn a young man who was about to marry a divorced woman. I told him (because this woman had no Biblical grounds for divorce) that I knew UNEQUIVOCABLY that she was not God's will for him. Mark tells us that to marry a divorced woman is to commit adultery -- not ever God's will for his people.

What was this young man's question for me? "So," he said, "adultery. That's big. But will God throw me out if I go ahead and marry her?"

What he wanted to know was, would there be a consequence. Answer? Yes. You see, he'd been told that God is love for so long that he thought love brought only good and pleasant things into his life.

Now, I'm not saying that he is about to lose his salvation. But I am going to stand on the side of the Word. When God warns his people, he is warning about the consequences of sin, whether it be the destruction of Jerusalem, or that Eve WILL DIE (as she did, and so did all of creation, both spiritually and physically).

To disobey God is to face the consequences. We must never forget that our good, loving God loves us far too much to let us go our own way. We help our children by letting them experience the consequences of their actions.

God loves us in a similar way. Don't ever underestimate his love for you.

So. How about you? Ever face a consequence? What was it?

Bette

The Power of Blessing

Jacob blessed Pharaoh.

Does that surprise you? It should. It blew me away.

Think about it. As Genesis 47 opens, Pharaoh has it all. Because of the famine, he owns all the land, has all the people's money, in fact, he's even managed to get the whole population enslaved to him.

He was the "Iranian Dictator," the Idi Amin, the People's Republic, of his era. He had it all. Everything.

But Jacob, who was a starving refugee still chose to bless Pharaoh, not just once, but twice in the same chapter. Why? What did Jacob have to offer? What gave Jacob the chutzpah to bless the highest leader in the land?

Because he had something Pharaoh didn't. Jacob had a direct line to the God of the Universe. Jacob had relationship. He had perspective. He had divine understanding (Jacob was a prophet!) Jacob had divine leading. Jacob had lived a life under the shadow of God's hand.

He didn't have stuff. Jacob had God.

Compared to that, Pharaoh had nothing.

So, what about you? Got God?

If you do, do you have the courage -- in the same audacious way of Jacob -- to bless the people you meet?

Can you give God's blessing to everyone? Rich or poor?

Bette

The little things are the big things.

One more on obedience:

It's really the little things. There are many little things I hear during the day that I must not ignore. No. I don't hear voices. But I do get the "impression" of instructions. Full sentences. Directions. Instructions.

Last weekend, I got the impression that I should mention to someone that he seemed tired and less than himself. He responded that I was right. I told him that I would pray for him. I think the Holy Spirit wanted him to know that HE cared for my friend.

Here are some I've heard lately:

Pray for that person.

Call her.

Contact him.

You should think about giving ... to ...

Contact (this person from my past professional contacts) and tell her you are thinking of her.

Write out a prayer for him. Send it.

Pray this way for your son.

Apologize.

Ask forgiveness.

Let it go.

Don't say it. (I need to heed this one more often)

Turn it off.

Work on this (project)

Do this project (a completely new idea I hadn't considered)

Write the opening like this (happened during a bike ride this weekend).

These are the whispers of the Holy Spirit in my life. They are personal. They are specific. They are time sensitive. Often, if I delay, the effect is negated. You could say that I'm schizophrenic (one who hears voices), but I don't think I qualify.

I think these things are common with Believers who listen. Ironically, you learn to recognize God's voice by beginning to obey. Just one at first. Then judge. Was it the Holy Spirit? What were the results? Was Jesus glorified? Was someone cared for? Was someone touched?

Then, the next time you hear that same voice you will recognize it more easily. Perhaps more quickly. It will start to feel familiar to you, perhaps as familiar as best friend's voice when she calls on the phone.

It happens. Listen. Obey. Judge. And listen again.

"My sheep know my voice."

Do you know your shepherd's voice?

Tell me a story about listening where it made a real difference!

Bette

Thinking About Obedience

This is so cool.

Today, at church, our pastor was talking about guidance and obedience. It was really good thinking and very relevant to this discussion, yes?

As a commenter mentioned in her writing: "I have trouble obeying if I don't have instructions." She's right. Without instructions, we are just wandering around in foreign country without a map.

So, where do you start? One easy place! Start by obeying (by the Spirit of God) all the simple instruction sentences in the New Testament. There are way too many to name. But let me give some examples:

John 15: Remain in my love. I command you to love one another. Romans 8: by the power of the Spirit, turn from your sinful nature. Give your body to God. Don't copy the behavior and customs of the world. Corinthians 5: Don't be caught by sexual immorality. A wife must not leave her husband. Happiness or sadness or wealth should not keep anyone from doing God's work. Use the things of this world without becoming attached to them. Don't be enslaved by the world. Let love be your highest goal. Be courageous. Be strong. Give the wonderful message of the Gospel to others. Make disciples. Obey the authority of the world (Do you obey the speed limit?) Don't think more highly of yourself than you ought (Romans )Don't forsake meeting together. Use your gift for the benefit of the body (are you actively ministering? Daily, weekly?) Are you living by the spirit or by human strength and rules? (Galatians) Allow the Spirit to develop the Fruit of the Spirit in your character (love joy peace patience kindness gentleness faithfulness, goodness self control). Don't follow the desires of the sinful nature. Pray for one another. Encourage one another. Try to find out what is pleasing to the Lord (and do it!) Make the most of EVERY opportunity for doing good in these evil days.

Are you living the disciplines? Are there some you could use some help with? Prayer? Word study, memorization, meditation? Fellowship? Service? Discipleship? Are you mentoring or being mentored? (These disciplines aren't just something the Navigators made up. They are recommended behaviors in the new testament. To develop the disciplines is to obey the Holy Spirit!)

So many single statements in the New Testament are TODAY's instructions. When we take them to heart (as the spirit whispers) and respond, THAT is obedience.

Just like Abraham.

Our pastor said this, and I think it is great advice, "If you are a Sunday Christian, don't expect to hear from God on Monday morning."

His point: The closer to God you walk, the more you will hear his voice, recognize it's timber and respond in obedience.

Yesterday, one of my daughters drove me home from shopping. A motorcycle was RIGHT ON HER BUMPER all the way. My daughter was angry. She was afraid for his life. She was full of emotion.

Frankly, her behavior, language and response didn't reflect her faith in Jesus. It was a perfect opportunity to obey TODAY, what she knew of God's instructions in her life.

Most of the time, my daughter succeeds. That particular time, she didn't. I fail too. I frequently speed -- just enough that I don't get a ticket.

You see? Obedience is most often not about the high and mighty things. It is about the small things. The small things lead to the bigger things. And then we look like Abraham, obeying THAT SAME DAY.

Bette

obedience 101.

I started over.

Right now, I'm reading in Genesis (again). I can't tell you how many times I've been through the Bible-- yearly since 1979 as far as I can remember. Every day, I see something new, something inspiring.

This time, I was reading in Genesis about God initiating a covenant with Abraham. In Genesis 17:22 my Bible reads, "That ended the conversation, and God left. ON THAT VERY DAY Abraham took his son Ishmael and every other male in his household and circumcised them."

I placed the CAPS there for emphasis.

Do you see what I see? God instructs. Abe obeys. Same day. In real time.

No delay. No arguing. No self-justification. No questions. No excuses. No "I'll do it as soon as I finish. . ."

I wish, after all these years, that I could be that obedient. This year, in January, God showed me a task he wanted me to accomplish. I thought it was about writing, and publishing. Now, I'm not sure.

When I thought it was about my success. I was quick to obey. When the whole purpose came into question, my enthusiasm waned. I slowed. I gave up. I failed.

Reading about Abraham gives me pause. I repent Lord. I will do it. I will keep at it. I will obey.

Okay. I've confessed. Now it's your turn. Where do you struggle with obedience?

Bette