Month: November 2024

Charles Spurgeon had an interesting way of looking at obedience to God when he wrote,” Submit yourselves under the hand of God, and affliction will lose its sharpness. Self-will and repining cause us a hundred times more grief than our afflictions themselves.” Thus, it’s pretty easy to understand…we can either willingly give our burdens to God and become dependent on His Will, or we can sit in the corner with our problem fuming, grumbling, and longing for something else to happen. Across Scriptures God echos these words…”Obey Me!” And if we do, we’ll discover in that act obedience, our focus will no longer be on the acute piercing pain of our affliction, but rather on His grace, mercy & love.

Jeremiah is acting as God’s agent here in the metaphor of refining silver. God asks him to “test” his fellow countrymen…discerning their hollow words of devotion and examining their false integrity. In the verses that follow, (28-30) we see how the refining process has yielded nothing of value…the people stubbornly remaining unfaithful, wicked, and completely hardened to Jeremiah’s warnings…their worship deemed as worthless.

To Believers in Christ…to those who follow Jesus…Thanksgiving Day isn’t just a holiday…it’s a way of life and the manner in which we should worship God daily. It starts with gratitude for God’s blessings, both big & small, and should be something we practice every day…for thankfulness starts in the heart and is expressed in our praise to Him for all things He has given us. So, today as you enjoy the holiday, resolve to be more thankful…to God & to others.

This Scripture is a moral admonition about Spiritual infidelity and the difference between the two meanings of love. To love the world makes us rebellious and prideful as we gauge our needs on purely material standards…viewing our achievements with selfishness, greed, and ambition. But the love (Agape love) of the Father refuses to accept such double mindedness, for if you’re a friend of the world, you’re an enemy of God. (James 4;4) So to change our mind & will, we need to remember what Romans 12:2 tells us, “Don’t conform any longer to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”

We all know the distinct divisions of the year…Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter. But as a Christian, our walk with the Lord is also divided into seasons. For just as all our times are in God’s hands, (Psalm 31:15) so are the seasons of our life. There will be seasons of great joy and fulfillment as we serve Him in ministering, volunteering, and touching people’s lives for Him. But just as the changing seasons march forward outside, so will God move us from one season to an another. Yet many times, this new season may be not what we want or desire to do. So, we can either graciously accept this new season of our life, maybe even operating in gifts we haven’t used in a while…or we can spend our time bemoaning & lamenting the past…and all the while being absolutely useless for God’s service.

You’ve probably heard it said…”Pick your battles”, and the older I get the more this is true. Most of the arguments we get into have nothing to do with the eternal scheme of things…they’re just quarrels that go nowhere and do nothing good. Paul’s letter to Timothy pointed to just three things that the young pastor was to spill blood, sweat, and tears for…and these were purity, peace, and people. He urged Timothy to strive for a modest, pure, and above reproach lifestyle that no one could point fingers at. He also called Timothy to pursue a demeanor of peacemaker. Finally, in verse 25, Paul took purity & peace and showed that without them Timothy would never be able to reach people for Christ. “Those who oppose him he must gently instruct, in the hope that God will grant them repentance…”

God doesn’t want a casual Sunday only type of relationship with you. He desires rather to be an ongoing, vital part of your everyday life…but how do we go about this? Frist, fill your mind with His Word. Hebrews 8:10 tells us that He will put His Law in our minds and write them on our hearts. Secondly, fill your soul with thanksgiving, or as Colossians 3:16 says, always have gratitude in your heart. Psalm 40:3 tells us to fill our mouth with praise and a new song of worship. Next, let your hands do His good works as you live to please Him. (I Thessalonians 4:11) Finally, let your feet walk in His light as you are constantly seeking His way. (Jeremiah 6:16) God wants all of you…with every part completely devoted to Him as you serve Him with wholehearted devotion, and with a willing mind, heart, and soul.

Even with his friends gathered around him, Job was lamenting his utter feelings of aloneness…instead focusing on his intercessor & friend in heaven, Jesus Christ. Human tears may only be a few centimeters in size, but their importance in Scripture is massive. Charles Spurgeon once wrote this about tears, “You can draw near to God even though you cannot say a word. A prayer may be cries tallized in a tear. For a tear is enough water to float a desire to God.” The mental picture of this quote of Spurgeon’s is mind boggling but quite clear. Tears are words the heart can’t express, (Psalm 56:8) thus within each tear is the recorded unspoken need of our heart… floating its way upward to heaven.

Many of the laments in the Psalms speak of being broken, crushed, and feeble. And in that state, we have two options to choose from. We can try to “fix ourselves” or we can let Jesus fix us. But the obstacle to this is…we have to first place all those broken pieces into His most capable hands and let them there. We must also acknowledge that we can’t “fix” other people, (Ezekiel 18:20) and we most certainly can’t “fix” ourselves. (Ephesians 2:5-8) Jesus can miraculously bring all those broken pieces of our life together and make something beautiful out of them. We just need to lay them down. (I John 3:6)

I firmly believe that nothing in my life happens by chance…especially interactions with people. Every person God brings across my path I can either be changed for good by them, or I am God’s vessel who can help them to change more into the image of God. In this Proverb is the picture of two pieces of iron sharpening each other…a working together in co-operation as the “rough edges” are rubbed off. Thus, every interaction we have during the day can be a chance to encourage, advise, exhort, and comfort one another. I also believe in “Divine Appointments” where God brings two people together for a specific reason of mutual benefit and character building. These moments are very precious as we sharpen each other for our good and His glory.