Tuesday, January 19, 2016

it's just like God

It’s just like God to do what He says He will do.  It’s Who He is; it’s His character.  He is faithful; He can be trusted.  

When the Lord Himself visited Abraham, as recorded in Genesis 18 and told him that Sarah would bear him a son in his old age, Sarah had trouble believing it.  And she heard it first hand!  She was inside the tent and overheard the conversation.  Her reaction?  She laughed.  It was one of those “are-you-kidding-me?” kind of laughs.  It didn’t make sense!  First, she couldn’t see herself at her age, with Abraham, at his age, “having pleasure”.  And even if they enjoyed the intimacy of husband and wife “at their age”, she was well past the age of child-bearing.  She was 90, and Abraham 100 years old.  

We can all relate to Sarah. After all, it was a pretty incredible, hard-to-believe promise.  But it was a promise, a promise from God no less!  But our reactions are often like hers.  You read in God’s Word to forgive.  Well, that’s fine and good, but does He really expect that in “my situation?” And He promises to forgive us if we forgive others; He promises His peace and strength if we do.  But really?  It doesn’t make sense.  How does forgiveness free me, heal me, make me stronger?  You’re right.  It doesn’t make sense.  No more than a 90 year old woman having a baby.  It doesn’t make sense.  It’s just true.  

I read in the Word to give, and not just give out of my abundance but to give beyond my ability to see how, if I give what I really need for myself, how my own needs will be met.  It doesn’t make sense.  No, it’s just true.  And then there’s the “love your enemies” thing.  How in the world does showing love to someone that I know hates me make any difference at all?  What does it change?  It changes me.  It changes my perspective.  I am the better and stronger person for it.  But that doesn’t make sense either.  It’s just true.  And the rewards are real, just like God promises.  

    “And the Lord visited Sarah as He had said, and the Lord did unto Sarah as
    He had spoken.”  Genesis 21: 1

In other words, God did just what He promised.  Sarah did indeed get pregnant, and she had Abraham’s son, Isaac, the son of promise.  “Is anything too hard for the Lord?” the messenger asked in Genesis 18.  No, nothing is too hard for the Lord.  It’s just too hard for us to believe sometimes.  But’s that’s ok.  The fact that we may have difficulty believing doesn’t change God’s faithfulness to His Word.  It may keep you from benefiting from the blessing of believing His promises if you can’t just take Him at His Word, but He won’t fail in the reality of those promises.  

So the next time you come across a promise in God’s Word and the reality of it just doesn’t make sense, just ask for help to accept it as the Truth it is.  Start living it out.  Put it into practice and see what God does with it. It may seem laughable at first.  But Sarah saw God’s incredible promise fulfilled.  So can you.  

Because it’s just like God to make good on a promise.  

Thursday, January 14, 2016

Weeds




They had been bloomin
g all summer and into fall, and they were pretty.  At least I thought they were, even if no one else did.  Especially when they were smaller, with those bright purple petals and darker purple and yellow centers.  But now they were large and growing on both sides of the steps down from the porch.  It was now December, in southern West Virginia, and they were still blooming!  But they were weeds, starting to look more like weeds, kinda scraggly, thin and faded, and taking over the bed.  And to Makenzie, my 11 year old granddaughter, the fact that I had let them grow to this size without removing them from the flower bed, well, it raised some questions in her mind.  


I was coming back to the house after being out in the pasture helping my hubby with some fencing.  Makenzie was coming out.  “Why haven’t you pulled up these weeds, Grammy? she asked. “They’re like monsters now.”  “WelI,” I answered, “I thought they were pretty, and they didn’t seem to be bothering anything.” After discussing the situation a few more minutes, I decided with her help to go ahead and pull them out, a fairly simple task that shouldn’t take long.  Well, that was before I started tugging at the roots and realized they went down pretty deep. But it had to come out now.  I had made such a mess.  So I bent over, gripped with both hands, dug in my heels and pulled even harder, and then it gave way.  The next thing I knew I was tumbling backwards over the large rocks that defined the bed, landing on my backside, feet up in the air, dirt flying.  Kenzie was trying to decide if I was really hurt, and having trouble not laughing.  


No, I was not terribly hurt.  A couple of scrapes, moderate bruises, and I was a bit sore the next morning, but I’d live.  And the weeds had been taken care of.  But the process had been a bit painful, and I got dirty.  


I faced a hurt this week that brought this little tussle with a weed to mind.  Hurts can cause a root of bitterness to start its descent into the depths of the heart, and I knew what the Scripture says about a root of bitterness.  It can find a place in the heart, and like those weeds, if it is not taken care of can do damage both to one’s self and others.  Things might look pretty good on the surface, but down deep, the longer the root remains, the stronger the grip grows.  Before long, if not dealt with, it will hinder positive growth all around. Your relationship with God and with others will suffer, keeping you from having the close, loving relationships with others you should have. Peace will escape you, and worst of all, it will keep you from experiencing God’s grace.  God’s grace will always be available, but a root of bitterness will keep you from being able to know it’s reality at work in your life.   


    “Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the grace of God.  Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many.”  Hebrews 12:15


I don’t know about you, but I need God’s grace at work in and through me...lots of it!  Amazing Grace...it’s not just a song.  His grace gives me a reason to get out of bed and face myself in the mirror when I have failed miserably.  His grace comforts me and pulls me out of the pit of sadness when all I want to do is cry.  His grace woos me with song, and builds joy back into my soul, when I just want to hide away.  His grace gently reminds me that Jesus has been in the pit, and He endured it for me!  He loves me (when others may not). He accepts me (when others may not). He has a purpose for me on a daily basis (when others may make me feel insignificant or dispensable), and that great purpose is to know Him and love Him more.  It’s to live to honor Him.  He is worth it, and makes my life worth it.  So when the bitterness tries to creep in, I go to Him with a resolve to rid myself of it.  I don’t want anything to keep me from “receiving the grace of God” when I would need it most.  So I give it to Him and I commit to doing what He says I must do in order to see the root destroyed…

    forgive;
    pray;
    confess;
    make changes;
    love unconditionally, like He does.

Digging that root out can be painful, but grace unfettered awaits!  I’m not saying it will be easy; you might just end up on your backside in the dirt!  

But it’s so worth it.