She who has ears to ear . . .

Deuteronomy 27:1–28:19; Psalm 119:1–24; Isaiah 54; Matthew 2

Being easily distracted, I often hear from God but forget what I heard, not because it was unimportant but because some other truth intrigued me and drew my thoughts away from the first one. This morning’s early prayer was that God would enlighten my darkness. Not knowing what to expect, the Lord surprised me by repeating that request:

Deal bountifully with your servant, that I may live and keep your word. Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law. (Psalm 119:17–18)

The order of these words tells me that God must grant me life and the ability to conform to His will — then open my eyes so I can see the ‘outrageous’ things that He wants me to see, including what I asked for today. What amazes me is that the enlightenment He gave is not a new vision but repetition of a promise I’ve read many times along with the realization of how easily I forget it and turn from it — becoming worried or concerned that He has not yet answered my prayers for some of my family members. When I read this passage, I felt like God was shouting at me. Those shouts are in italics, the main one is in bold letters:

“Sing, O barren one, who did not bear; break forth into singing and cry aloud, you who have not been in labor! For the children of the desolate one will be more than the children of her who is married,” says the Lord. “Enlarge the place of your tent and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out; do not hold back; lengthen your cords and strengthen your stakes. For you will spread abroad to the right and to the left, and your offspring will possess the nations and will people the desolate cities. “Fear not, for you will not be ashamed; be not confounded, for you will not be disgraced; for you will forget the shame of your youth, and the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more. For your Maker is your husband, the Lord of hosts is his name; and the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer, the God of the whole earth he is called. For the Lord has called you like a wife deserted and grieved in spirit, like a wife of youth when she is cast off, says your God. For a brief moment I deserted you, but with great compassion I will gather you. In overflowing anger for a moment I hid my face from you, but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,” says the Lord, your Redeemer. “This is like the days of Noah to me: as I swore that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth, so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you and will not rebuke you. For the mountains may depart and the hills be removed, but my steadfast love shall not depart from you, and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,” says the Lord, who has compassion on you. “O afflicted one, storm-tossed and not comforted, behold, I will set your stones in antimony, and lay your foundations with sapphires. I will make your pinnacles of agate, your gates of carbuncles, and all your wall of precious stones. All your children shall be taught by the Lord, and great shall be the peace of your children. In righteousness you shall be established; you shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear; and from terror, for it shall not come near you. If anyone stirs up strife, it is not from me; whoever stirs up strife with you shall fall because of you. Behold, I have created the smith who blows the fire of coals and produces a weapon for its purpose. I have also created the ravager to destroy; no weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord and their vindication from me, declares the Lord.” (Isaiah 54:1–17)

Aside from not being a deserted wife, this describes some of my experience. Saved as an adult, I came into the kingdom thinking I knew what I was doing but realize now how much I relied on myself and didn’t seek the Lord. My family suffered because of my pride. God could have blessed them with salvation but chose instead to humble me. He persists, yet He also promises to take care of family members. Yet when I hear the promises but see little evidence that anything is happening, I become discouraged, even distracted away from walking by faith to relying on sight.

APPLY: Today God shouts at me. “Stop letting sight run your life and listen — I am going to teach your family and give them My peace. Focus on that and instead of letting what you see determine what you believe, let My promises fill your heart and give you peace.” Amen!

 

Idolatry — a subtle sin

Deuteronomy 5; Psalm 88; Isaiah 33; Revelation 3

What mother has not said, “How many times do I have to tell you . . . .” and wondered if that child would ever learn to do or not do what she was saying? It is part of growing up. Repetition is needed because we forget, or we want to do our own thing.

I forget too. In going through several years of writing that includes everything from poetry, how-to articles, Bible study lessons, essays, fiction and nonfiction, I’m amazed at how some pieces are good but I don’t remember writing them. This includes spiritual lessons. I wrote much that God taught me and I should have remembered but it went in my ear and out my pen without making much difference in my life because I forgot it.

In Deuteronomy, Moses repeated the history of God’s people from the exodus to their entrance into the promised land. He knew they would forget the lessons God was teaching them just as God knew the same would happen with generations of believers. We need to continual reminders!

He even rehashed the Ten Commandments and poked my memory. They cover every sin but some are not as easy to apply, particularly the first one about having no other gods. Recognizing idols is not as easy as realizing blasphemy, failure to keep the Sabbath, dishonoring parents, murder, adultery, stealing, lying and envy.

Some define idols as that what we think about all day. Others say idols are what we rely on to make us feel good, or happy, or satisfied. I’m not sure that second definition is legit. For instance, a friend adores a well-known singer. She recently celebrated her 90^th birthday and her daughter arranged to have that international recording artist give her a phone call and wish her happy birthday. She was ecstatic yet this ‘idol’ will never replace Jesus in her life. She loves the Lord with all her heart even though that singer makes her feel great delight.

I’m more convicted by the idea that my idol is what I think about all day, particularly on those days when I DON’T think about the Lord very much or those days when the thoughts that He gives me in the morning are forgotten by noon.

The writer of Psalm 88 is not like that. His discouraging psalm starts with despair and ends even more gloomy. He says, “O Lord, God of my salvation, I cry out day and night before you. Let my prayer come before you; incline your ear to my cry!” (Psalm 88:1–2) At least this psalmist is honest even though his troubles are overwhelming, he knows where to go with his problems. He is thinking about God and has no idols.

Neither does the prophet Isaiah. He sees the world in a mess, as we do these days, but he knows where to turn and what to remember:

O Lord, be gracious to us; we wait for you. Be our arm every morning, our salvation in the time of trouble . . . . The Lord is exalted, for he dwells on high; he will fill Zion with justice and righteousness, and he will be the stability of your times, abundance of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge; the fear of the Lord is Zion’s treasure . . . . For the Lord is our judge; the Lord is our lawgiver; the Lord is our king; he will save us.” (Isaiah 33:2; 5-6; 22)

But not all the people of God put Him first in their lives. Every hour I forget Him to do my own thing, I am violating the new life of Christ He gave me. No one is saved by keeping His commandments, but those who are saved are given a renewed heart that responds to Him with love, a love that wants to do His will. Yet I forget.

Not only that, the human heart swings to extremes. In Revelation the Lord speaks to three churches. One is cold. One is hot. The third is not dead but without zeal.

Jesus tells the dead church to wake up and repent. He commends the church on fire to hold fast, but His words to the third church reveals how blind they are to their idolatry and how they thought they were doing well:

“Because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see. Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent. (Revelation 3:16–19)

APPLY: Confess my forgetfulness for what it is — a lack of deep love for my God. Do whatever it takes to keep His truth before me, in my thoughts, words and actions. Shove aside anything that does not conform to the will of God lest it becomes an idol and makes me forget what the Lord says to me.

 

 

 

Education begins with WHO you know . . .

My mother-in-law noted my eagerness to study and learn and once said, “I don’t understand why anyone would want to go to school when they didn’t have to.” Mom didn’t understand that teacher-types love learning.

My granddaughter and I share this desire. She says she cannot read enough books or learn enough new information. In my study of spiritual gifts, I’ve learned that this describes the teaching gift in Romans 12. It is about gathering and sharing information, yet not always in a formal way. Librarians, researchers, and other people may have the gift but not the title. In a spiritual sense, it is wanting people to know the truth, think the truth, and live the truth.

This was true of Peter. The key word in his second epistle is knowledge occurring twelve times in its various forms:

May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence. (2 Peter 1:2–3)

For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness. (2 Peter 1:5–6)

For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. (2 Peter 1:8)

For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. (2 Peter 1:16)

Knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. (2 Peter 1:20–21)

Knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. (2 Peter 3:3)

You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, take care that you are not carried away with the error of lawless people and lose your own stability. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen. (2 Peter 3:17–18)

As I read these verses about knowledge, I’m pleasantly surprised that they form an outline of the book, beginning with the need to know Christ for salvation, then to add knowledge for spiritual growth, then to verify the source of knowledge, and at the end Peter’s warning about false teaching and the need to keep growing in the knowledge of Jesus Christ.

Peter also stresses the importance of remembering certain things:

Therefore I intend always to remind you of these qualities, though you know them and are established in the truth that you have. I think it right, as long as I am in this body, to stir you up by way of reminder, since I know that the putting off of my body will be soon, as our Lord Jesus Christ made clear to me. And I will make every effort so that after my departure you may be able at any time to recall these things. (2 Peter 1:12–15)

This is now the second letter that I am writing to you, beloved. In both of them I am stirring up your sincere mind by way of reminder . . . (2 Peter 3:1)

This points to my tendency to forget. This is not about dementia or a trait of teacher-types; it is part of what it means to be a sinner. I forget, partly because the desire to run my own life is strong and partly because I tend to rush on to the next thing without putting into practice the current thing (and that is a characteristic of teacher-types). For this, Peter shows the danger of forgetting and the need to practice what I’ve learned:

For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. (2 Peter 1:9–10)

He also reminds me that my timing (hurry, rush, do it now) is not the same as God’s timing. For this, I need the patience that come with a deeper knowledge of God:

But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. (2 Peter 3:8)

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Lord Jesus, today I felt heavy but the burdens were vague, unclear. This is good indication that the enemy is trying to pull me down. You are never fuzzy when You put a burden on my heart, nor is that weight heavy. Today is my weekly time to spend a couple hours in prayer with others. We have had remarkable answers and yet some of us have been in dark and troublesome spiritual battles. I know the answers to this from Your Word and need to put those answers into practice, praying first for protection and deliverance from the evil one. Thank You for Your loving care and for teaching me that sometimes a cloudy morning means great sonshine later on!

Today’s thankful list . . .

- God’s faithfulness to keep reminding me to put into practice what I must not forget.

- praying almost always clears the fuzz!

- sweet fellowship also removes weighty worries.

- a nice call from a customer who bought a quilt pattern from me.

- an afternoon to catch up chores and work on a charity quilt.

- food in the frig and a warm place to live.

- so many blessings.