Love the puzzles. . . .

Yesterday I was driving home from meeting with my prayer partner. As I came near to a pharmacy, I knew I was supposed to go there. The Holy Spirit insisted, but I didn’t know why. Once inside, I reviewed the aisles where I might need something, but nothing popped to mind. Then I found it, something important I needed but had totally forgotten until I saw it on the shelf. Praising God, I paid at the till and went home.

O Lord, you have searched me and known me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O Lord, you know it altogether. You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high; I cannot attain it. (Psalm 139:1–6)

Too wonderful indeed! The Lord remembered what had slipped my mind, but instead of putting that in my head, He urged me to stop at the only place on my way home that had it.

For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:9)

Why did He do that? To show me that He knows my needs even if I cannot remember them, and supplies my needs even when they slip my mind? If I worry about dementia, there is no need. If I get too busy to think straight, He will think for me.

While the word ‘higher’ can be translated ‘arrogant’ not so with God and His ways. Rather, they are beyond my imagination. This gives me reason to worship. It also gives me confidence to pray and ask Him to surprise me.

But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him.” (1 Corinthians 2:9)

Sometimes I’ve told God what I want done, but never have I been able to guess what He will do. His ways are higher, but not only that, I am not God and the Holy Spirit who lives in me does not let me in on everything about His creativity. He only tells me what I need to know so I will obey Him and so He will be glorified rather than me gaining any credit or praise.

Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen. (Ephesians 3:20–21)

PRAY: Jesus, You show me how to live in a kingdom filled with surprises and instead of getting upset that I don’t know how or when, You enable me to trust You to answer prayers Your way and be content to wait with great expectation of what will happen next. I’m so blessed and so glad to enjoy the puzzle rather than chaff because I’m not able to guess Your mysteries. Bless You.

Hearing His Voice

 

One television show has a character who speaks with enthusiasm but his voice is so garbled that most viewers cannot understand a word. The show’s main characters do, and oddly enough, close captioning gets most of it, but even without knowing what he is saying, his gestures and emotions Sometimes give clues.

I’m glad Jesus is not like that. He says,

Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live….Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice…. (John 5:25-28)

…. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out…. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.… My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. (John 10:3-27)

Do we need to learn it? Or do we just know it? Today’s reading says that we learn to hear it through Scripture, providential circumstances, and through a divine inner conviction, and the more we obey, the clearer His voice becomes.

Jesus did not say that. He says we just know it. In my experience, the problem is not lack of knowing but lack of listening. I can think of countless examples of ‘just knowing’ I was supposed to do something. Sadly, I also have many examples of ‘just knowing’ but not listening, either because I didn’t want to do it or I wanted something other than what Jesus was telling me. My lack of obedience did not dull my hearing, but it did and still does hinder my spiritual growth.

The voice of a stranger could refer to Satan with his lies or to false teachers with their persuasions. It could also refer to my flesh or old nature with its I-wants and pride that assumes I have a better plan. I’ve also had times when that voice was a whisper and my way simply shouted so loud that I didn’t want to hear God. Those are the times that I learned lessons the hard way — by making foolish decisions and doing the wrong thing, only to realize later that God knows best.

A good point from the reading is to make sure His voice is His voice before I move ahead. Sometimes my thoughts sound good but they are not His thoughts. He says:

For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:9)

This is why Bible reading and careful study are so important. Not only do Christians make errors by not reading, but by assumptions. For instance, no verses say there were three wise men, not a big deal yet a mistake due to lack of research.

PRAY: Lord, I’m glad that You speak into my life. Today, I have clear direction from You regarding today’s to-do items and the importance of diligence in them. I also hear You when talking with friends about their prayer requests and later as You remind me to pray. I’m prone to make lists of things so I will not forget, yet Your voice reminds me and keeps me on track because I am prone to forgetting to look at my lists! Not only that, You often surprise me with Your words of peace and comfort when I get in a dither or am over-tired. Thank You so much for talking to me and with me, for making Your thoughts known, and for directing my words and actions too.

Making Plans . . .

 

This morning began with an evaluation of the past few days. They all seemed scattered with chores not getting done or interrupted. Procrastination and frustration partner to make me wonder about better planning.

At the same time, these verses came to mind as a caution that the will of God must be in the planning:

Proverbs 16:9. The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.

Jeremiah 10:23. I know, O Lord, that the way of man is not in himself, that it is not in man who walks to direct his steps.

Then there is that passage in James that warns against boasting in my plans rather and leaving God out of them. It ends with, “Whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.”

Then I thought, isn’t God a planner? Doesn’t He have a schedule? I was soon chuckling because by divine providence, I discovered my word for today is PLAN.

Scripture says much about God’s plans. In general, the history of the world is in His hands. A word book adds this from the OT use of this word plan:

“When used of God, it refers to his plans for humanity and his reactions to human activity. Thus, God plans protection for his people, and when they sin, he plans punishment for them. Ultimately, God’s plans are too deep for human understanding and are eternal. One implication of this word is that God’s plan for humanity (and by extension, for individual humans) is thoughtful, intricate, detailed, and intentional. God’s choice of individuals for salvation, blessing, or calling is calculated and the result of careful consideration and, perhaps, evaluation.”

Jeremiah 29:11 makes obvious that His plan is good: “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”

Are the plans of God general or specific? I’d say both. The above verse is general, but today He put thoughts in my head about planning then pointed me to that specific topic! This cannot be a coincidence and often happens.

The major plan of God presented in Scripture is His plan of salvation. This is marvelously presented in Ephesians 1:5–10.

“(God) predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.”

The scope of this plan is declared in Acts 2:23 by Peter, “This Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men.” God planned redemption before the foundation of the world.

In contrast to human plans, God’s plans are vast and last forever. Psalm 33:11. “The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of his heart to all generations.” Obviously, Isaiah 55:9 is correct in saying, “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” I cannot know what tomorrow will bring and, in a moment, circumstances can change everything. However, I can do better in setting goals and being more God-like in my efforts to accomplish them.

GAZE INTO HIS GLORY. Considering God’s ways makes a difference in planning, but I need to consider the differences. God can plan but only He can declare “My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose.” He plans with foresight, forethought, care, and even at creation He already determined the whole course of history. He even draws sinful human actions into fulfilling His divine plan. I don’t have that power.

God can also stop my plans. Psalm 33:10 says, “The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; he frustrates the plans of the peoples.” This means, as James says, to consider the will of God in planning and being willing to have my plans interrupted by something else that He wants for me or from me. Unlike God, I don’t know these things ahead of time, but keeping in tune with Him means having the discernment to know if the interruption is His idea or a swipe from the enemy to throw me off target. Also, some of God’s ideas could be unpleasant, yet as Jesus said, “Not my will but thine be done.”

Proverbs 12:20 is a good place to start any plan: “Deceit is in the heart of those who devise evil, but those who plan peace have joy.”