Past Devotions

How Come? No Matter What!

by TerryLema

Perhaps my favorite Old Testament prophet is Habakkuk. The book of his prophecy is only three chapters long. It begins with a question rather than his pedigree. Most of the Old Testament prophets at least tell you who they are or list the kings that are on the thrones while they are prophesying. Habakkuk does none of that. He just starts asking God questions, such as “how long,” and “why do You ….”

When God responds to his initial questions, Habakkuk asks even more. He wanted to reconcile what he sees going on around him with the goodness of God. Habakkuk saw the approach of the most fearsome nation on earth at that time, and he feared Israel was next to fall to the Babylonians.  He also saw his own nation sinking further into sin and no one seemed willing to stop their descent.

Habakkuk wanted to know why God would use a nation far more sinful than Israel to chastise Israel. He had so many questions … maybe we have some of the same?

God does not exactly answer Habakkuk’s questions. What He does do is reveal himself to the prophet.  At the beginning of Chapter 3, Habakkuk writes of the splendor and the power of His God.

“Lord, I have heard the report about You; Lord, I stand in awe of Your deeds…. God comes from Teman, the Holy One from Mount Paran…. His splendor covers the heavens, and the earth is full of His praise. His brilliance is like light…. He stands and shakes the earth; He looks and startles the nations.” [3:2-6a HCSB]

It is after the revelation of God’s splendor and might that Habakkuk moves from “Why” and “How long …” to “No matter what,” or in his words: “Though the fig tree does not bud and there is no fruit on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will triumph in Yahweh; I will rejoice in the God of my salvation!” [3:17-18 HCSB]

We may never get our “Why” or “How long …” questions answered. But when God reveals Himself to us, in His Word and in the Power of His Indwelling Spirit, we like Habakkuk can cry out, “No matter what, I will triumph in my LORD, I will rejoice in the God of my salvation.”  Amen & Amen.

 

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Surprise, Surprise!

by TerryLema

God is full of surprises! I think He also has a sense of humor! I was recently informed by NBC in my email news feed of a new discovery.  In their words, “Researchers in New Zealand have discovered three new shark species that glow in the dark, with the kitefin shark now the largest-known luminous underwater creature.”

Not only do we have giraffes, and duck-billed platypus, and birds that cannot fly (penguin, ostrich, and kakapo), and living creatures we can see through (jellyfish), we now have glow-in-the-dark sharks.  Of course, the sharks have always been there, it is that we now know they are there.

After all these years, mankind is still discovering things that God has had around us all along. Mankind thinks it knows it all, but God still has surprises to be revealed. Isn’t that amazing!

When John the Baptist was in prison (soon to be beheaded by Herod), he sent his disciples to Jesus. He sent them with a question.  “Are You the One who is to come, or should we look for someone else?”  [Luke 7:19 HCSB]

Instead of simply answering John’s question, Jesus showed John’s disciples what was happening all around them.  “[Jesus] replied to them, ‘Go and report to John the things you have seen and heard: The blind receive their sight, the lame walk, those with skin diseases are healed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor are told the good news.’” [Luke 7:22 HCSB]

John’s ministry was one of repentance and his disciples would have been familiar with that. Jesus’ ministry was one of miracles and promises of eternal life. I wonder if John’s disciples were surprised by what God was doing through Jesus.  I wonder if after John’s death, they transferred their allegiance to Jesus.  I wonder …

God is full of surprises!

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God of All Comfort

by TerryLema

I have been asked so many time how people endure and recover from the harsh realities of life. After suffering loss, people are confused and lost, even if the loss was expected. When the loss is unexpected, it can be even worse.

Christians often ask me after experiencing a loss, how anyone that does not know the LORD can cope with the accompanying grief.

Grief is a journey that no one genuinely wants to undertake.  And yet each of us at some time will experience it.  I have walked my own grief journeys, and I have walked with others through theirs.

As I face grief, or see others beginning their own grief journey, I am reminded of what Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians.

“Praise the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort. He comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any kind of affliction, through the comfort we ourselves receive from God.”  [2 Corinthians 1:3-4 HCSB]

Paul identifies our God with two titles. He is the Father of Mercies. And He is also The God of All Comfort.  All Comfort!

 All comfort comes from Him, whether it is received by Christians or by those who are not. In loss, He alone sustains people, even when they are not aware of that.

Right now, people I love are beginning a grief journey. I pray the God of All Comfort meets them, sustains them, guides them by the power of His Spirit through their journeys. I pray that they are aware of His comfort. I pray I am able to comfort them with the comfort I have often received from my LORD.

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God’s Will

by TerryLema

I was reading Acts 16 which describes the evangelization of Europe. Initially, Paul was “prevented by the Holy Spirit from speaking the message in Asia.” [Acts 16:6b HCSB]

He then “tried to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them.” [vs 7b]

Finally, in a night vision Paul saw a Macedonian man pleading with him to cross into Macedonia. After that vision, Paul and his companions “set out for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to evangelize them.” [vs 10b]

The first convert in Europe was a woman named Lydia in Philippi, who invited them to stay in her house. Then Paul cast out a demon from a slave girl and ended up in trouble with her owners, was dragged into the marketplace and accused of disturbing the city – an unacceptable event in a Roman colony. Eventually, Paul and Silas were beaten with rods and thrown into a jail, which led to the conversion of the Philippian jailer and his entire household.

As I was reading about those events it struck me that Paul was directly in the will of God.

He had followed God’s leading in his missionary journey, gone where God wanted him to go, and ended up being accused, beaten, and thrown into jail.

Joseph, in the Old Testament had a similar experience. He concluded, “You planned evil against me; God planned it for good to bring about the present result—the survival of many people.” [Genesis 50:20 HCSB]

We can be in the center of the will of God and still have trouble. Interesting.

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Perfect Faithfulness

by TerryLema

Last Friday was a discouraging day for a number of reasons. By nightfall, I was ready to withdraw from everything. My heart hurt for others going through difficult times. I was frustrated trying to make plans for the committee charged with recruiting my replacement. It was a difficult day.

When I woke up Saturday, I had a message from a friend at 5 AM asking if I was “up yet.” Messages at 5 AM are never good, and this one proved that point.

So, of course, God was already prepared for my discouragement. One of my daily verses brought me to Isaiah 25. That chapter in my Bible is titled, “Salvation and Judgment on that Day.”  That day’s verse opened the chapter.

“Yahweh, You are my God; I will exalt You. I will praise Your name, for You have accomplished wonders, plans formed long ago, with perfect faithfulness.” [25:1 HCSB]

I was struck by two phrases. The first reminded me that God’s plans for this world were “formed long ago.” They are set firmly in His unchanging nature. Nothing takes Him by surprise – not even those things that discouraged me Friday and Saturday.

The second thing that struck me is Isaiah’s reminder that God accomplishes wonders – those plans formed long ago – “with perfect faithfulness.”

I do not have any answers yet for the discouraging things that currently surround me. I am still a little frustrated and emotionally wobbly. But God … (how often we live in those two words!) … but God has plans formed long ago and I shall yet see His wonders. He will perform them with perfect faithfulness.

I need to live in the reality of His perfect faithfulness.

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New Thing

by TerryLema

I have made the difficult decision to retire from The Way at the end of this year.  It was not an easy decision to make as I love this little church. No matter how much I love it though, God has been clear that He has another person waiting in the wings to take this little church to the next growth step.  My part is almost complete, the new pastor’s part is about to begin.

That leaves me with many thoughts and questions. I know that as Paul turned the reins over to Timothy, he advised his young successor in many things. The one that consistently comes to my mind has become my prayer for the new pastor—that God would bring The Way a pastor who is dedicated to correctly teaching the truth of God’s Word.

“Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who doesn’t need to be ashamed, correctly teaching the word of truth.”  [2 Timothy 2:15 HCSB]

One other thing I think about is what I will be doing after I leave The Way. Bob and I will need to find a new church (and I have several in mind), and I will need to find that “new thing” God has for me.

I know I will continue to write about my LORD and Savior as long as I can.  I think I might like to do some mini messages on social media. I know I will want to pray more. Maybe I will even host a weekly women’s meeting or Bible Study.  Where and how these things will develop is still uncertain, but I know that I am not done – yet! My path is simply going to be a bit different, but it will still be directed by my LORD and will, hopefully, bring Him glory.

Amen.

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I Want to See Him!

by TerryLema

2 Chronicles 5 records the things that happened when Solomon’s Temple was completed.  Solomon brought all the items David had consecrated into the temple treasury.  He then assembled the elders and brought the Ark of the Lord’s Presence to its home in the temple.  The musicians and the singers were also called.  They raised their voices and began to praise the LORD.  Their song was simply, “He is good; His love endures forever.”

What happened next always thrills me: “Then the temple of the LORD was filled with a cloud, and the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the glory of the LORD filled the temple of God.” [vs 13-14 NIV]

Every Sunday we carry the presence of the Lord into our churches.  Routinely we sing and praise Him.  I have sensed the Lord’s presence in our worship services at The Way, as I have in worship services in other settings.  But I so yearn to see the glory of the Lord fill us – since we are God’s temple now – fill us so perfectly that we cannot stand nor minister.  [1 Cor 3:16]

I want to see the glory and the power of God knock us off our feet.  Our problems and struggles, our opposition in this day and time are great.  The enemy is unleashing attacks against us since he knows that with each passing day his time is getting shorter and shorter.  I know that God promises that when evil increases, grace will increase even more.  I know those things; I still want to see God’s grace, His glory, His power in such measure that we are on our faces before Him, so enthralled and awestruck that we can do nothing but surrender to His presence.

LORD, I want to see You.  Amen.

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Circumstances & Hearts

by TerryLema

I came across a list of “laws” a while back.  Laws such as: The Law of Mechanical Repair: After your hands become coated with grease, your nose will start to itch, or The Variation Law:  If you change lines or traffic lanes, the one you were in will start to move faster than the one you are in now. And this one: The Law of the Last Word: “Hey, watch this!”

Most of the ‘laws’ made me laugh.  One really made me think.  It is the Law of Location:  No matter where you go, there you are.

The writer of Chronicles tells us where we can find the circumstances of David’s reign.  “As for the events of King David’s reign, from beginning to end, they are written in the records of Samuel the seer, the records of Nathan the prophet and the records of Gad the seer, together with the details of his reign and power, and the circumstances that surrounded him….” [1 Chronicles 29:29-30 NIV]

When Paul peached at Pisidian Antioch, he tells us about David’s heart — how God testified “I have found David son of Jesse a man after my own heart.” [Acts 13:22 NIV]

Too often, we are more concerned with the circumstances we find ourselves in than we are about the condition of our hearts. We keep praying for God to take us out of our circumstances.  Even if God does take us out of our present circumstances, unless we change, nothing changes — “no matter where [we] go, there [we] are.”

Our hearts must change; we must change.  We must have hearts after God’s own heart just as David had.  Then it will not matter our circumstances.

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Obstacles

by TerryLema

“One of the greatest obstacles to the progress of the Gospel is the bad example of people who profess to be Christians. Unsaved people like to use the inconsistencies of the saints—especially preachers—as an excuse for rejecting Jesus Christ.”

That quotation is from Warren Wiersbe’s “Be Series” on 2 Corinthians.  I read it as I was studying.  Two little word phrases stood out as I read it, “profess to be” and “as an excuse.”

Not everyone who professes to be a Christian is.  Paul reminds his readers in 2 Corinthians that “it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends.”  [v 10:18 NIV]

I can call myself anything, that does not make it so.  The proof of what I am will be demonstrated in not what I say, but in what I do.  Those who proclaim to belong to Christ need to make sure that their example proclaims the same thing.  Of course, we all make mistakes, even those the Lord “commends” will not be the perfect example all time, but we must strive for consistency and when we fail, we must ask forgiveness not just from the Lord but from those we have hurt.

The other phrase … “as an excuse.”  I have met some people who will use anything as an excuse for rejecting Jesus Christ.  I have seen them come into church and leave saying someone disrespected them, the preacher said something that offended them, there was too much of this or not enough of that, and of course, the most common, “all the church wants is my money.”

Unfortunately, when we stand before the Savior one day, no excuse will be validated.  We will not be able to blame our rejection of Christ Jesus on anyone else.  It will come down to our own personal choice.

Father God, I ask the power of Your Spirit in me to always lead me to be a good example of my profession of faith in Your Son.  Help my testimony and my character to be consistent before You.  Amen.

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Free Men Slaves

by TerryLema

I love the irony found in 1 Peter 2:16: “Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God.”

The word Peter chose to use for “servants” in this passage is doulos in the Greek. It means “slave.”  What Peter wrote is, “Live as free men…live as slaves of God.”

We have been set free. But set free for what? To use our freedom as a cover-up for evil? “Heaven forbid!” as Paul might say.  No, we have been set free so that we can willingly and enthusiastically take this free life and place it under the authority and LORD-ship of Christ Jesus.

Our salvation is more than mere words spoken one day at an altar.

Our salvation is more than simply repeating “The Sinner’s Prayer.”

Our salvation decision is merely that, a decision. (and I’ve made a lot of decisions that I never carried through on when I found the path was too difficult or the cost too great.)

While our salvation words, prayer, and decision are necessary and good first steps, they must be followed by a true conversion. That conversion encompasses producing fruit from our repentance and a willing and complete surrender of our will, our life, to the LORD-ship of our Savior. To stop short of that is to live in an extremely dangerous place. We may think it is enough to just get by, but when it comes to being saved, I sure do not want to “just get by.”

I want to freely give all to the One who loved me and died for me. I want the world to know I love Christ Jesus and am willing to lay it all down for Him.

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