On Eagles' Wings

“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven.” Ecclesiastes 3:1

            When writing these devotionals, I’m sometimes directing them at myself. This is one of those times. I happen to be in a season of life that is very busy with pressures from different directions and many decisions to be made. That causes me to feel as if the burdens coming at me from different places are pressing me down. At the same time, I’m being pulled in just as many different directions. This season of life is not about bad or difficult situations. It’s just very busy in a lot of different ways. Because of this, I’ve been experiencing long days at my job, and long days of work outside of the office.

            As I thought of this feeling of being both pushed and pulled, of falling into bed exhausted each night but not able to sleep and waking each morning already overwhelmed by the day ahead, I realized the importance of what this verse from Ecclesiastes is saying by what it doesn’t say. God’s word says there is a time and season for everything. So there is a time for me to work at my job. That means there is also a time when I should not be working at my job. There is a time for me to think about the decisions to be made. That means there is also a time when I should not be thinking about those decisions. Times of rest that have been missing from my day-to-day life. There seems to be little, if any, balance in my life and in my schedule.

            When I talk about rest, I don’t mean just being a couch potato for a time. True rest is much deeper than physically resting. In fact, sometimes our most restful times are found in physical activity. I recently “rested” by enjoying the beauty of God’s creation of each little, beautiful, amazing snowflake as I cleaned off the drive. True rest is found by slowing down our brains enough to be able to hear what God is saying to us. He may be trying to give us an answer to a question we have. Perhaps He is showing us an area of our life that needs to change. Or maybe He just wants to remind us of how much He loves us. When we are allowing the things of this world to block the voice of God, we are choosing to keep ourselves from the peace that can only come from God.

            Are you in a season of busy-ness? How do we slow our minds enough to be able to rest in the midst of all the pushing and pulling that’s going on in our lives? I’m not sure I have a good answer to that. I’ve found a few things that have helped. I’m still trying to convince myself that it’s okay to leave some things undone. That’s a hard one for me! Another is to find creative ways to spend time in God’s word. For example, I’ve started listening to an audio Bible on my drive home from work. While that’s not a replacement for taking the time to dig in and meditate on God’s word, it does help quiet my brain from the day that has just passed. Something else I need to do is to be more intentional about remembering to give thanks for the many blessings of God. Maybe these ideas will help you or you may have other ideas or practices that will help you determine what time and season you are in. That will also help you know what time and season you are not in. And that knowledge will create space for the peace of God in your life.

“And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”   Matthew 28:20

It’s happened again. When I was in my teens and early twenties, my family and I would sit up late talking on Christmas night. We usually had the radio on so we had Christmas carols playing in the background. Every year, we laughed at the fact that at the stroke of midnight, the carols suddenly stopped and the stations went back to their regular programming, almost as if Christmas had never happened. While we may laugh at radio stations, that can also happen in our hearts. And that’s no laughing matter.

We have just celebrated the incarnation, which means that God because flesh. We call Him Immanuel, which means “God with us.” If Jesus had just come as a baby, and either stayed a baby or immediately returned to heaven, it still would have been incredible. To think of the King of the universe choosing to take on human flesh! As it says in one of my favorite carols, Arrival, “Royalty robed in the flesh He created.” But Jesus didn’t stop there. He grew, He lived, He ministered, He experienced, He loved, He cried, He healed, He taught, He bled, He died, He rose again! But He still doesn’t stop. He tells us that He will never leave us! This Christmas story, this babe in the manger, is just the beginning.

Now that the carols have stopped playing, the wrappings are cleaned up, and the big dinners are over, where is Jesus? Is He still in the manger? Is He a cute little baby to coo over? Or has He moved on to live within you, minister to you, love you, heal you, teach you? Has He been given His rightful place on the throne of your heart? Has He truly become the Lord of your life? If He has, what will your response be? Will you keep Him as a beautiful, sweet secret in your heart? Or will you spread Him to everyone you meet?

“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.”  Luke 2:14

This is the song sung by the angels to the shepherds when Jesus was born.  We see this verse on Christmas cards and hear it sung at Christmas concerts.  Is it the song you’re singing?  Or are you like me: so busy preparing for a holiday celebrating the birth of our Lord that you feel you don’t have time to sing praises to Him? 

We hear about how busy the holiday season is and at least once each year I hear someone (often myself) say that they wish it were different, that we could slow down to enjoy the season more.  We say that next year will be different.  Next year we’ll cut out activities, or pare down gift giving, or streamline decorating.  But next year never seems to come, does it?  Sometimes we take positive steps in that direction, but then something happens to throw a curve ball into our well-laid plans of a peaceful holiday season.

Maybe the real problem isn’t our pace of life.  Maybe we need to remember to praise God regardless of what’s going on around us.  Are you overwhelmed by your to-do list?  Praise God!  Are you excited about the upcoming holiday?  Praise God!  Are you sad, lonely, or grieving?  Praise God!  Is your faith so alive and real that you can’t help but shout and sing?  Praise God!  Does your faith seem dead and dry?  Praise God!  How can we praise Him in all these circumstances?  By remembering that He still is in the highest heaven, He is the author of peace, and His love sent the baby in the manger who grew to be the Savior on the cross.  Praise God!

“Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” Psalm 46:10

            Are you all ready for Christmas? I didn’t think so. There’s so much to do! Decorating inside and out, buying gifts, baking cookies, wrapping, addressing and mailing cards, preparing for and attending parties – the list goes on and on. Our normally chaotic pace of life becomes absolutely frantic this time of year. The problem is that I was already struggling to find time to just relax, to breathe, to experience the presence of God in my life. When we add in all the other “duties” this time of year brings, it can be overwhelming. We may be preparing to celebrate the birth of the Prince of Peace, but we feel nothing but harried and exhausted. And we often feel like a failure because we didn’t get it all done.

            God calls us to a completely different experience. He wants us all to Himself. He wants some time with just you, not you plus a list of a thousand to-do’s rushing through your mind. He wants us to relax, to listen to Him, to be aware of His nearness. The Bible says He’s a jealous God. That concept can trip us up sometimes because we think of jealousy the way we experience it – that green-eyes monster that feels awful and makes us think, say and do crazy things. That feeling that’s so very “me” centered. But that’s when we’re jealous OF something. God isn’t jealous OF anything. He’s jealous FOR us. He wants us to spend time with Him for two reasons. One is He loves us and likes us that much. But the other is because He knows how much we need that. He knows that when we skimp on our time with Him, we begin to lose sight of Him and His will and desires for us. We focus more and more on our circumstances and less and less on the One that has already overcome them.

            When we’re already so busy, how in the world do we find time for one more thing? When it feels like our days are already fuller than we can handle, how can we find time to slow down and be with God? That’s the challenge I’ve been facing lately. I know I need to spend more time with Him. Besides, I really want to! But how? First, I looked at my schedule to determine what can be eliminated, at least temporarily. Some things are non-negotiables. The job has to stay. Cleaning house (unfortunately) must be done. But do I really need to put up outside Christmas lights? I decided that for this year, it’s not a necessity. Baking Christmas cookies is not a necessity. If you have kids at home, that might be more necessary. But maybe there’s something else that can be eliminated. Do we really have to attend every party to which we’re invited? “No” is an okay response!

            Beyond cleansing my schedule of the unnecessary items, I’ve also tried to find some extra moments in my day. I had been looking for extended times with God. I hope to have those again, and soon. But for now, when do I have just a few minutes and how can I use that time to be with God? Something I started doing is using my drive time coming home from work. I started listening to a daily devotional during that time but then decided I’d rather listen to God’s word. So now after work, I get in my car, pull up an audio Bible and spend that time relaxing into God’s word for me. I realized that as I am pulling out of the parking lot and the reading is beginning, I now breathe a huge sigh! It’s like even my body is relaxing along with my mind and spirit. I’m amazed how spending those few minutes with God reenergizes me for what still lies ahead in my evening. That’s why God tells us to be still. And know. Know Him. He is God. God will be exalted. All the nations of the earth will see him exalted. No one and nothing can stop that and I look forward to that day. But we can know that experience right now if we’ll just be still.

“He has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature.” 2 Peter 1:4

“And it was so.” Genesis 1:7, 9, 11, 15, 24

            Do you ever wonder if God’s promises will come true? Maybe you’re not sure if they actually apply to you. Or you wonder if God is really bigger than your problems. When we look around at our society, it’s easy to think that there’s no solution to the problems we see. Our circumstances seem so overwhelming that we can’t imagine how even God could bring good out of what we’re enduring. Or perhaps you believe that God can and will keep His promises, but you don’t know what those promises are. In fact, there are some who aren’t even aware that we have promises from God.

            The verse quoted above from 2 Peter says that He has given us promises. But not just any promise. His promises are very great and precious! If you’re not sure what those promises are, I encourage you to begin seeking them out. Dig into God’s word and find out what He has promised you. If you don’t know where to start looking, start with one word: prayer. Ask God where to look. Ask Him what He wants to show you. I think you’ll be amazed at how God will lead and direct you. It may not happen in a minute or a day, but He will lead and guide you to the exact promises He knows you need to hear during this exact season of life.

            Has anyone ever made a promise to you and then not fulfilled it? That hurts, doesn’t it? Let’s turn the tables a little. Have you ever broken a promise? I’m sure there was a very good reason for it. At least, I can always come up with what I think are good reasons for the times I’ve broken a promise. But it’s still a broken promise. Because of those kinds of experiences, it’s easy for us to believe that God doesn’t always keep His promises. We know He’s a good God, so we believe He intends to keep them. But what if situations change? Will that change His promises? Or what if He doesn’t really have the power to do what He promised? He may want to fulfill His promise, but something happens and it’s no longer possible.

            Take a look at the first chapter of the Bible. The very beginning of time. It started with, well, nothing. Nothing existed except God. Out of nothing, God created everything. Have you ever created anything? A painting, or music, or a story, or a meal, or a building? We can be creative in so many ways. But not one of those begins with nothing. I dare you. Try creating a meal out of nothing. No ingredients. No nothing. Or create a painting with no paints or canvas. Or a building with no building supplies. We can’t do it. But God did. In fact, all those things we use to be creative were actually created by Him.

            How did God create out of nothing? He spoke. That’s it. Over and over in Genesis 1 it says that He said, “Let there be . . .” Five times that’s followed with, “And it was so.” That’s the pattern. God speaks and it happens. If you ever begin to doubt God’s promises to you, just take a look at creation. Look at the sky. God spoke that and it was so. Look at plants and trees. God spoke those into existence, and it was so. See the sun and the moon? After God spoke, it was so. Look at any animal, from gnats to elephants. God said, and it was so. When I realize that God’s words could do all of that, it’s kind of hard to think that He couldn’t keep His promises to you and me. He can and He will keep those promises. Every one of them. Maybe not in my time or in the way I think it will happen, but every single one of His promises will be fulfilled. Praise Him for what He’s already done, and for what He’s going to do! If He has spoken it, it will be so!

“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12:2

            Have you ever talked with an author about something they’re in the process of writing? It’s so interesting to hear them talk about what’s already in their mind. If they’re an author of fiction, it’s as if the characters are friends of theirs and they are relating the story of something that actually happened. Before a single letter is put down on paper, they already know the story and the characters. They may not have all the details worked out yet, but they know that it will all become clear if they just continue pursuing it. If the work is to be non-fiction, they have a deep interest in the subject and have done research until they know it backwards and forwards.

            For the most part, that describes Jesus. He’s the author of our faith. He wrote the story. The only difference is that He has always known the end of the story. Unlike human authors, there was never a time of working out the plot in His mind and wondering where it was going to end. From before the beginning of time, He knew the end. And that includes writing the story of our own faith journey.

            He’s not just the author of our faith. He’s also in the process of perfecting it. Nothing about us will ever be perfect this side of heaven. If you’re a perfectionist who can’t seem to accept imperfections in yourself, give it up now. It’s not going to happen. If you get down on yourself because your faith wavers and isn’t perfect, know that God doesn’t expect us to be perfect. He does expect us to allow Christ to lead us toward perfection. There are two huge differences between those two concepts. One is that He never expects us to do it on our own. We are to fix our eyes on Jesus, the One who will perfect us. The other is that He doesn’t expect us to reach it. That’s why He will make us perfect in heaven. We won’t do it. He will. And it won’t happen here. Only in heaven.

            When we’re working so hard to try to make ourselves perfect, where’s our focus? That’s right. On ourselves. How much better to fix our eyes on Jesus! What have you or I ever done for ourselves? Not much. But look at what Jesus has done. He endured the cross. He took all our sin on Himself. He scorned the shame heaped on Him. He experienced death and the grave. He rose again. He’s now seated at God’s right hand in heaven. I don’t know about you, but I’d much rather have my eyes focused on Him than on my puny little attempts to be good. If I’m looking at my attempts, no wonder my faith wavers! But when I focus on Him, everything changes.

            If you’re going through a period where your faith seems a bit shaky, readjust your focus. Remember who wrote your faith journey. Take your eyes off yourself and your circumstances and place them squarely on our beautiful, perfect Savior seated at God’s right hand. The One who is and has always been perfect will make you perfect, too. Until that happens, He’ll give you the faith to continue the journey, all the way to the glorious end!

“Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.” Romans 8:1, 2

            What amazing and freeing verses these are! I’ve heard them quoted often and have often quoted them myself. No condemnation! That sounds wonderful, doesn’t it? In fact, too good to be true. I’ve heard these verses used as an argument to say that God will never punish us or send anyone to hell, principles which seem to be refuted elsewhere in scripture. So I decided to look into the meaning of the original Greek words to find any nuances that don’t exist in our English translations. Do you want to know what the original word translated “condemnation” means? It means condemnation. Law means law. Sin means sin and death means death.

            Then I was struck by the very first word: therefore. When we see the word “therefore” we need to ask what that word is there for. Going back into chapter 7, I see that there has been discussion on the struggle with sin. It talks about the fact that we do what we don’t want to do and don’t do what we want to do. If that sentence confused you, join the club! That concept has confused many. Paul is basically trying to answer a question that plagued many back then and still does today. That question is why we continue to sin when we’ve been saved from sin by Christ’s death on the cross. He talks about being a slave to sin. Can you relate to that? Is there a sin or bad habit you just can’t seem to break? I know the answer because every one of us has something that holds us tight and doesn’t want to let us go. Some of those are more obvious than others, so you may think you know of someone who doesn’t struggle in that way. Don’t you believe it! If you’re still alive on this earth, you still have an area where you want to please God but just can’t seem to break free of sin’s hold.

            God’s word promises that He will free us from that. If that’s true, then why do we still struggle? Because we are still works in progress. I’ve heard of people who accepted Christ into their lives and immediately their desire for what held them captive is gone. The never wanted another cigarette, or drink, or hit of a drug, or whatever their overriding sin was. But that’s not the usual way of things. It’s normally an ongoing battle to fight against that addiction, winning freedom over it inch by inch. And even if God did do that for you, there are other sinful desires that will very quickly take the place of the one that was removed.

It’s important to remember that those who don’t know Christ don’t fight the same battle because they are easily convinced that sin is no big deal. They may want to break free of the hold a specific addiction has on their life but it’s we who know Christ that really are in the battle. We’re the ones who know that not only does that sin have a hold on us, but it keeps us from full communion with our Lord and Savior. I picture being held tightly by an assailant. Those who don’t know Christ are more likely to just give in and go with the assailant. But those who know Christ fight back, trying to break free of the hold. Unfortunately, in addition to being in that battle, many of us join another battle by believing the lie that when we become Christians, we should be perfect and no longer sin.

And that brings us to these verses at the beginning of chapter 8. If we have the Spirit of God living within us, there is no condemnation. Sit on that for a minute. No condemnation! Not any! Nada! We still have the struggle but there are two major differences now that we know Christ. One is that we have the Spirit to help us in that struggle. And the second is that we are no longer condemned for that sin. That doesn’t give us free reign to continue in sin, but it does give us freedom to stop beating ourselves up over it. God knows our hearts. He knows that we love Him more than the sin. Or at least that we want to love Him more than the sin. He still condemns the sin, but He knows that the sin isn’t us and so that condemnation isn’t on us. We are (or can be) free from the guilt, fear and condemnation we so often place on ourselves. See yourself as God does: free! Truly free!

“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the world of truth.” 2 Timothy 2:15

            I’m about to walk that fine line between grace and works. This verse seems to be full of works, especially when taken by itself. “Do your best.” “Present yourself.” “Workman.” Those all scream works, making us believe that it’s up to us to work hard to become all that God wants us to be. Nothing could be further from the truth. It’s very true that God expects us to work for Him, but we do it in His power and by the leading of His Spirit. I think it’s important to remember that this verse is in the middle of a discussion about our words. The previous verse talks about quarreling over words, and the following verse discusses godless chatter. Taken in that context, what does this verse mean?

            I think it means that part of the work we’re to do involves our words. Not just what we say but how we say it is important to God. But now we’re to go a step further. God tells us to handle the word of truth correctly. First, we need to know what God means when He says the word of truth. I can answer that in one word. The word of truth is the Bible. It’s each and every verse written in those 66 books, even the verses we don’t like. God speaks to us in other ways, such as through other Christians, or through circumstances, etc. But if you think you hear God telling you something that contradicts what’s in the Bible, it’s not truth and it’s not really from God. It’s so easy to be led astray to something that is easier to hear and therefore easier to say. But if it contradicts scripture, you’re contradicting God. Let me give you an example. God loves everyone. (true) Therefore, God wants everyone to be happy. (not necessarily true) Therefore, a loving God will never discipline us and will never allow anyone to go to hell. That’s absolutely not true. Do you see the slippery slope? We take one truth, twist it to fit our definition of love, then come to a conclusion that’s much easier to hear and therefore easier to say.

How do we correctly handle the word of truth? The first step is to know what the Bible says. Spend time in the word. Study it. Meditate on it. Memorize it. Let it sink deep into your heart. Secondly, ask the Holy Spirit to be your teacher so you can understand it from God’s perspective. Using the example above, if it doesn’t make sense to you that a loving God will allow some to go to hell, ask the Spirit to make it clear to you. Ask for His help in understanding this. And finally, don’t give in to the temptation to water down God’s word to make it a little more palatable to others. That doesn’t mean we condemn others or try to shove the Bible down their throats. We are to speak the truth in love. But we still speak truth. We do it in the way and at the time that God directs. And remember that just because we’re speaking truth doesn’t mean it’s all doom and gloom. The truth may mean that someone needs to give up the sin that seems so enticing. But it’s also true that God is waiting to bring that person into a place of total freedom in Him. That’s very good news!

Let’s not skip any of these three steps. Don’t say you’re speaking for God if you don’t know yet what God’s word says. Don’t explain God’s word to others if you haven’t been taught by His Spirit. And don’t spend all your time immersed in God’s word and neglect sharing His truth with others. When we do all three of these things, we will be able to unashamedly present ourselves to God and God Himself will approve. That’s something worth working for!

“For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”  Hebrews 4:12

I love to read, and I love books. There’s nothing like the feeling of getting a new book, opening it for the first time, preparing to find all the treasures hidden within the pages. A book may take us to places we’ve only dreamed of, or it may teach us things we didn’t even know we didn’t know. I’ve heard people say that books are their friends and I understand what they mean. As a child I made friends with other kids who were characters in various books. I’ve grown to appreciate my friendship with those imaginary children and innumerable imaginary adults in innumerable stories. But in a much more realistic way, I’ve become friends with many, many other people who are, or were, very real and alive on this earth. Because when a book, fiction or non-fiction, touches your mind, heart and soul, you become friends. Not with the book, but with the author of the book. The book is just a means of communication between the author and the reader.

There’s an author like none other Who has written a book like none other. That book, of course, is the Bible. And the author is God. In one sense, the Bible was written by 40 different authors. But even though it was 40 different hands penning the words, all those words came from God. And those words are very special words. They are so much more than just words on a page. They’re living and active! Which makes sense since the author is living and active in a way that no human is or was. The words He gave to each of those 40 men are actually from the heart of the Creator of the universe!

Unlike human authors whom we may never meet, God very much wants to be known through his word. He reveals Himself through the Bible so we can know Him a little better each time we read it. And because it’s alive, it never becomes irrelevant. What other book can you say that about? For thousands of years, people have read the Bible and felt like it was written just for them and for the situation they’re going through right that moment. And it was. God’s word never changes because God never changes. One of the miracles of His word is that it’s relevant for every culture and every age.

God’s word isn’t just relevant, it’s sharp! It’s so sharp it can separate things that are almost inseparable. Separating soul and spirit would be like trying to cut the layers of a piece of paper but God’s word can do that. I take great comfort in that. It’s amazing to me how Satan and the world can worm their way into my thinking. The enemy can make his deceptions look so much like the real thing that I can’t always tell the difference. But God can. His word will divide the counterfeit from the real.

            It’s not just relevant and piercing, God’s word also judges us. Not just our actions, but it goes much deeper to judge our thoughts and attitudes. We may not think we’re doing anything so terrible, and maybe our actions aren’t bad. But the thoughts and attitudes behind our actions may tell a different story. I’m sure we’ve all experienced times when a verse seems to cut into our hearts. If you think that hurts, think how Peter must have felt when Jesus responded to him, “Get behind me, Satan!” Even though Peter was a follower of Christ, Satan still was able to twist his thinking to something that was not God-honoring. The protection against that is both simple and hard. The simple part is to make sure we’re spending plenty of time in God’s word. The hard part is to let that word penetrate deeply enough to shine a light on our thoughts and attitudes. The purpose is not to make us feel terrible about ourselves. It’s to clean away all the filth so we can have a closer and deeper walk with God. As hard as it is and as much as it may hurt, God and His word can bring our dirt into the light so we can be cleansed by Him. So let’s start with the simple part – spending more and more time in God’s word, so He can help us with the hard part. All to bring us to the joy filled part of growing closer to Him.

“This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.”  1 John 5:14

What usually strikes a person first about this verse is that we can ask anything we want. Before we go any further with this, I need to draw your attention to those 4 very important words: “according to his will.”  This isn’t a blank check for a million bucks or three more wishes. Once we get that part out of our brains, let’s look at the rest of it.  We have confidence in approaching God. Why? Because He hears us. Period. Not sometimes, or even most of the time. He hears every single prayer sent His way. Wow! With a promise like this, what could possibly keep us from going to God with every need in our life?

Is it possible we don’t really believe this verse? We know in our head that God hears us, but do we really believe it with our whole being? Or maybe we think (even unconsciously) that we don’t need God. After all, we’re intelligent, capable individuals, right? I’m not trying to diminish anyone’s self-esteem, but if I think I’m those things, I need a bigger picture of Who God is. I only need to compare myself to our omnipotent, all-powerful God to realize I need Him every minute.

Or maybe we’re afraid He’ll actually answer. You know – “Be careful what you pray for because you just might get it.”  If that’s you, just remember that God’s not some cosmic genie that we can control. If we ask for something that God knows is not in our best interest, He overrides our request. He doesn’t give us anything outside His will or outside His plan. Or maybe you think He’s too busy to hear your requests. Just think of all the prayers going up to Him at any one time from all over the world. It’s hard for me to believe that a God who would sacrifice His only Son for me would then be too busy for me.

What’s stopping you from approaching God? Is it one of these reasons or something else? Let’s search our hearts for the reason(s). Then confess any sin of unbelief and turn over to Him any area of doubt. We need to ask Him for a bigger picture of Himself and a truer picture of ourselves. Only then can we approach Him with full confidence.