God Doesn’t Always Remove Your Problems
Father, as I sit with You tonight, I would place into Your hands something that is weighing heavily on my heart and mind. For me, though not for You, it is complicated and has overwhelmed me. In Your time, may Your will come to fruition. Amen.
Acts 4:23-31 (<<click here to read the passage)
This passage made me think that though the followers of Jesus were facing a formidable force in the Jewish High Council, they most assuredly stood with a much greater force that could not be hindered in any way. As long as they remained in the center of God’s will -under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, absolutely nothing could stop them from accomplishing what He desired!
When Peter and John rejoined the other believers and shared with them the events that had transpired, they immediately lifted their voices together in prayer to God. v24 NLT
You would think that they would have prayed for some way around the problems they faced. They did pray that God would hold their adversaries accountable for their actions, but they did not turn tail and run – not at all! Instead, they prayed,
And now, Lord, observe their threats [take them into account] and grant that Your bond-servants may declare Your message [of salvation] with great confidence… v29 AMP
They had no intention of doing anything but moving boldly ahead and proclaiming God’s message of salvation!
It made me think of the following quote: God didn’t remove the Red Sea. He parted it. God doesn’t always remove your problems, but He will make a way to get through them.
To my knowledge, it is not attributed to any one person or publication but has shown up several times on the social media platforms through which I have perused.
So many times, in our lives – and my opening prayer is an excellent example – we are overwhelmed by circumstances in which we find ourselves. Honestly, I’d rather run but if I run nothing is accomplished. Change on one front of the other needs to take place. Now maybe nothing will change at all, but the attempt must be made. The parties involved must be made to come face to face with God and His divine will and if one or the other refuses to move or change that is on them.
But if one, or both, yield to God…so much the better.
Once more, God didn’t remove the Red Sea. He parted it. God doesn’t always remove your problems, but He will make a way to get through them.
O Lord…give us, your servants, great boldness in preaching your word. v29b NLT May we not shy from adversity if it brings You the glory! Amen.
Jan 31st, 2022, Mon, 7:06 pm
There’s a Standard Associated with That
Father today has been all over the board with plenty of good, and some of the bad and ugly as well, Regardless, You are in control and I am grateful that blessings of the good far outweigh the struggles of the bad.
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An interesting conversation took place this morning at one of my churches. Over the last couple of years, we’ve had several Amish families move into our area. One of my members has had quite a bit of interaction with families near his home. He’s provided transport for some of them, they’ve done some work for him, all in all, he’s developed a good relationship with several of them.
For those of you who may not be familiar with the Amish, here is a short description from Wikipedia.
The Amish are a group of traditionalist Christian church fellowships with Swiss German…Anabaptist origins. They are known for simple living, plain dress, Christian pacifism, and slowness to adopt many conveniences of modern technology, with a view neither to interrupt family time, nor replace face-to-face conversations whenever possible, and a view to maintain self-sufficiency. The Amish value rural life, manual labor, humility, and Gelassenheit*, all under the auspices of living what they interpret to be God’s word. (Click here to learn more of Gelassenheit. I found it very interesting!)
To most who know of them, who they are and what they do is closely associated with their faith. They still use horses and buggies. They don’t have electricity. They are very respected craftsmen and farmers.
The discussion at church revolved around how many of the Amish in our area bend some of the commonly held rules of their order. Someone mentioned them cutting ice blocks to be stored away for use in warmer weather (remember, no electricity – no refrigerators).
How do they cut it? They use a circular saw.
How is it powered? With a gas engine.
What? They don’t use those kinds of things, do they? Yes, they do.
They bend rules to accomplish a task.
In a later conversation, one member felt the Amish were out of line in a lot of areas – all in the name of their faith. One example is that they don’t pay any taxes – though, for instance, they use the same roads we pay taxes to maintain. And then a few other things were said in that regard.
As I thought over these things later, I found it interesting that we would hold the Amish to certain expectations because we associate their faith so closely with their lifestyle. It made me think, is that the pot calling the kettle black, or what?
We live our lives pretty much however we want. Others may know of our faith, but the question is, do we conscientiously live out our faith in what we say and do each and every minute of each and every day? Or do we bend the rules to accomplish the task at hand?
People are watching us, whether we like it or not. If we’ve ever admitted to following Christ, there’s a standard associated with that. What do people say about how you live your life? And most importantly, how does how you live, reflect on Christ?
Be careful, therefore, that the light that is in you is not darkness. Luke 11:35 AMP
Jan 30th, 2022, Sun, 7:38 pm
What Love Can Do
Father as I come to sit before You this evening, my mind and body are weary. May I clearly hear You through the fog in my mind and may I plainly share the word that You have for me. Amen.
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This afternoon, through a majority of my routes, we had a beautiful snow! There were huge flakes, and it was quite heavy at times. We have snow on the ground from over the weekend and this round was a nice dusting over it all. What gets plowed off the highway in front of our home isn’t very attractive, but this prettied it up very nicely!
Driving through it brought to mind a story I shared a while back, but it’s such a simple – but special – memory, that I need to share it again.
Back in high school, my dad pastored a church that was nestled in the mountains of West Virginia – Parsons, WV to be specific. It was the norm to get quite a bit of snow there (this past weekend they were supposed to get around two feet of it!)
One winter evening, my sister Katrina and I decided to take our dog, Sugar, for a walk into the center of town. It had been snowing steadily and all around us was white. It was less than a mile and we were in no hurry. It was late enough that traffic was non-existent. No one was around and we just quietly walked through the falling snow, with nothing but the sound of crunching snow beneath our feet. I remember walking past the streetlights and looking up into the shining lights to see the snow continue to come in steady sheets blowing and swirling as it gently fell to the ground. It was breathtaking.
If enough snow falls it does an excellent job of smoothing things out. Jagged edges are rounded. Lumpy ground is covered in a carpet of snow and often we can’t even tell what lies below. A miracle of God’s creation accomplishes on a grand scale what man cannot. Mile upon mile is coated, many times bringing portions of our lives to a standstill, if only for a short time.
1 Peter 4:8 communicates a beautiful and impacting command. It reads,
Above all, have fervent and unfailing love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins [it overlooks unkindness and unselfishly seeks the best for others]. AMP
Just as humanity cannot accomplish the immensity of a winter’s snow, we are incapable of loving as we should. In our humanity alone, we falter in our love, but when we share our love out of God’s limitless reserve, great things happen. In that setting, our love for one another can be fervent. It can be unfailing. And in the process, that kind of love can cover a multitude of sins!
In our world, it’s a challenge to overlook unkindness. Our instinct is constantly fed by our culture and instead of overlooking unkindness, we seek retaliation. Instead of unselfishly seeking the best for others, many are all about looking out only for themselves.
Lord Jesus, as we strive to love You with all that we are, may our love for others, which is a natural byproduct of that love, cover the parts of the earth that we individually touch. In so doing may our combined touches, thoroughly cover a multitude of sins so that we can begin to see past the jagged edges of pain and hurt and instead see the world as You do…and forgive. Amen.
Jan 27th, 2022, Thurs, 7:41 pm
Mouth Agape
We had safe bus runs to and from even in the bitter cold. Thank You, Father, for keeping us safe – bus drivers, parents, kids, teachers, and all.
Acts 4:13-22 (<<click here to read the passage)
I cannot say that it has ever happened to me, but I have seen movies where it has happened. And I am sure that there have been people through the ages that though they by everyone else’s assessment didn’t amount to a whole lot, had laid low the educated and mighty before them with simple yet profound statements.
The closing sentence in yesterday’s post was that Peter’s sermonette had left his audience speechless. There Peter and John stood – just the very minimal amount of education, plain and simple fishermen of all things – and they found themselves before this mighty group of men – leaders, educators, and well educated themselves. At least in their small corner of the world, they held great power and anyone in their right mind wouldn’t think of challenging them, much less calling them on the carpet for who they were and what they had done. But that’s exactly what Peter did!
Peter laid them out and left them with their mouths agape! These most learned men stood there astounded and befuddled! With the evidence of Peter and John’s miraculous act standing right there among them (literally!), there was nothing the council could say. So they ordered Peter and John out of the council chamber and conferred among themselves. vs14b-15 NLT
They were the power players in this scenario (at least they thought so), and they were the ones who had to step back and figure out what in the world they were going to do! They couldn’t deny what had happened – many faithful Jews had seen it take place and the word was spreading like wildfire through all of Jerusalem. All they could come up with was damage control and to put their best bullying foot forward, they commanded them never again to speak or teach in the name of Jesus. v18 NLT
But much to their chagrin, Peter nor John were bothered one iota at their empty threats and gestures. Their retort?
“Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you and obey you rather than God, you must judge [for yourselves]; for we, on our part, cannot stop telling [people] about what we have seen and heard.” vs20-21 AMP
Can’t you see them standing there all flustered? They were at a total loss! They couldn’t punish them. I mean really, for the healing of a man who had been lame for more than 40 years? v22 They would’ve had a riot on their hands for sure.
God was at work and whether the religious elite acknowledged it made it no less true. As we continue in the days ahead God’s elect surely felt God’s hand at work among them and rejoiced!
Jan 26th, 2022, Wed, 7:55 pm
Crystal Clear
We had another day off with the snow and icy road conditions. Though the sun has hopefully melted much of what was on the backroads, I would ask, Father, that You would keep us safe as we head out in the morning. Amen.
Acts 4:8-12 (<<click here to read the passage)
I’ll tell anyone right up front, that I’m not a good debater. If I’m called on the carpet to defend something, I might do a passing job, but probably not a good job.
If someone corresponds with me via email, unless it needs a very simple reply, for the most part I won’t give an off-the-cuff response. I may not reply until much later in the day or even the next day. I’ll type out what I want to say and read over it a few times to make sure it is thought through and given the attention it needs. I take important things seriously. I strive to make myself crystal clear and am determined to be honest and straightforward at all times.
Now the Apostle Peter was much better at on-the-spot retorts. Granted at this point, he was working fully under the direction of the Holy Spirit. God was using him in a mighty way!
It’s obvious as we read this passage that Peter was being crystal clear. He took this whole interaction with the Jewish High Court very seriously. No falsehood slipped over his tongue, and he minced no words but went directly to the core of the issue at hand.
Verse 7 tells us that Peter and John were repeatedly asked by the High Court, “By what sort of power, or in what name [that is, by what kind of authority], did you do this [healing]?”
Peter clearly broke his answer down, spelling it out for them.
…if we are being put on trial today [to interrogate us] for a good deed done to [benefit] a disabled man, as to how this man has been restored to health, let it be known and clearly understood by all of you, and by all the people of Israel, that in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene… vs9-10a
Did he leave any base uncovered? He missed nothing! But he wasn’t quite done! He wanted to make sure they understood who he was referring to when he said Jesus Christ the Nazarene – though you’d think that that was pretty obvious.
…whom you [demanded be] crucified [by the Romans and], whom God raised from the dead—in this name [that is, by the authority and power of Jesus] this man stands here before you in good health. v10b
He then quotes Psalm 118:22,
This Jesus is the stone which was despised and rejected by you, the builders, but which became the chief Cornerstone. v11
They may have held themselves to be the pillars of Judaism, but Jesus was the Chief Cornerstone and the building stood on Him and Him alone!
And he drove home that point by proclaiming at the end,
“And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among people by which we must be saved [for God has provided the world no alternative for salvation].” v12 AMP
Needless to say, his audience was speechless! And that in itself was quite an accomplishment!
Jan 25th, 2022, Tues, 6:16 pm