Month: June 2025

Just think how many of our memories and celebrations are intertwined with food. Food is the love language of our lives. For everyone has special dishes only made for certain holidays…and everyone uses food to celebrate birthdays, special occasions, and parties. That’s because, if you think about it, food is a huge part of our lives as a means of socialization, love, and showing we care. So when a loved one’s declining health affects their desire for food…it can cause feelings of helplessness and guilt in us. But know this is a perfectly natural response as the body starts to shut down. So rather than forcing food and fluids on them in a power struggle that neither of you will win…offer bites of their favorite foods and sips of fluids. For the type of energy they need right now is a spiritual energy, acquired from the spiritual bread and water that only Jesus Christ can offer.

Thinking that God doesn’t hear us when we pray is a misnomer. He doesn’t hide Himself from us, (Isaiah 30:21) in fact, God tells us, “Before they call I will answer; while they are yet speaking I will hear.” So the real problem lies in our listening. In John, Jesus admonished us to “Listen to My Voice.” (John 10:16) and that, “My sheep hear My Voice and obey.” So why don’t we hear God? It all lies in the need to quiet ourselves in order to hear His Voice…and this involves calming and quieting our soul and waiting quietly for the Salvation of the Lord. (Psalm 131:2 & Lamentations 3:26)

The Tribes of Reuben and Gad requested permission from Moses to settle in the Transjordan territory (the region east of the Jordan River and the Dead Sea) that Israel had already conquered. But because all of Israel was to participate in the conquest of taking the Promised Land and their failing to help and support their fellow Israelites would only dishearten the remaining tribes, Moses sternly warned them against the sin of doing nothing. Moses also admonished them with the dire warning that if they failed to do God’s Will, “Be sure your sin will find you out.” So many times we think sin is doing something wrong…when sin can also be failing to do something we know we should do.

Many times we will settle for a nearby Church to attend because it’s easier and closer…and we can have more time to do fun things on Sunday afternoon. We may even know deep down that we’re compromising every time the Pastor gets up to preach unsound doctrine and social issues…rather than the Word of God. But we’re just too lazy and selfish to look for a new Church. In his letters to the young pastor, Timothy, Paul exhorted him to be faithful to God and His Word always…rightly handling the Word of truth of the whole counsel of God with emphasis on the Gospel Message …even calling Timothy a good soldier of Christ Jesus…(II Timothy 2:3) urging Timothy to always having singlemindedness and readiness in his commitment in staying true to the Word of God. That’s the Church and type of pastor you need to be looking for.

Daniel’s prayer, (Daniel 9:1-27) is rooted in the conventual understanding of the Lord’s relationship with His people. It’s a plea for His compassion and pity…grounded on God’s promises…offered in a spirit of contrition and humility. Daniel is confessing and acknowledging right up front the sinfulness of the people, but yet seeking God’s pardon and favor in spite of their unrighteousness. You can almost hear the desperation in Daniel’s voice…”Hear us, deliver us, and spare us according to Who You are Lord!”

This confession to God is hard. It means we have come to the end of ourselves, and have to finally acknowledge our human frailty. For many times we’ll try everything under our own power before we’ll even admit that we’re helpless, incompetent, and inept. But its when we finally come to this humbling point that God’s power, might, and strength can carry us through any difficult and trying situation…and give us the quiet peace and trust we seek. (Isaiah 32:17)

The Lord is our just Ruler. “He will judge the needy with righteousness.” (Isaiah 11:4) James 4:12 tells us that, “There is only one lawgiver and judge.”…His name is the Lord. Psalm 89:18 goes on to tell us that we have but one King, the Holy One of Israel. Finally, the Lord is our Savior and Deliverer. So we can rejoice in confidence that, “Surely this is our God; we trusted in Him, and He saved us. This is the Lord, we trusted in Him; let us rejoice and be glad in His Salvation.” (Isaiah 25:9)

God desires our covenant faithfulness and loyalty…not mere ritual. He is much more concerned with the attitudes of our hearts than in all the self-serving, showy, and established ceremonies we perform. For what God really values is our intimate relationship with Him more than all the rites we can think up to do in His honor. That’s because, they mean nothing to Him if we’re simply going through the motions without even thinking about what we’re saying or doing.

There is fullness of joy in the indwelling Presence of the Holy Spirit, and this Psalm teaches us that it’s our trust & faith that ushers that joy in. Right before He left the earth, Jesus told His disciples to tarry in Jerusalem for the promised Holy Spirit…and so on the Day of Pentecost, Peter addressed the gathering crowd by quoting David who said, “I saw the Lord always before me. Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.” (Acts 2: 25-28) This joy we have is because the Holy Spirit unites us with God… so that His love is not only demonstrated in us, but that we can become one with Him in exactly the same way Jesus was.

We should come to God trusting and expecting His response…but what if He doesn’t answer in a way we desire? First we must realize that God will only give things that are good for us in the light of eternity and always in accordance to His Will. It says we are to ask, but our asking cannot be out of selfish desire for our own self-fulfillment, for God refuses to grant our petitions when they are from evil impulses. (James 4:3) Next we are told to seek… but this requires a wholehearted focus and not with a complacent or indifferent heart and mind. Finally, we are to knock on that closed door…checking our motivation in humility and even desperation…just like the thief hanging next to Jesus on the Cross…for it very easily could be us there.