Skeletons!

Rest in God's Faithfulness
by Charles R. Swindoll
Psalm 54:6
As David's lament (Psalm 54) over the grind of difficult people draws to a close, he turns from bitter resentment to find rest in God's faithfulness. David has named his enemies and acknowledged their sins, and he has surrendered his right to justice, placing them in God's hands. As a result, David finds peace. The tension of "Destroy them in Your faithfulness" (54:5) gives way to the tranquility of "Willingly I will sacrifice to You" (54:6). He has discovered the serenity of letting God be God.
Surrender
Willingly I will sacrifice to You;
I will give thanks to Your name, O LORD, for it is good. (54:6)
The concept of surrender is difficult to grasp in our culture. It's easily confused with "giving up" and carries the implication that we're accepting defeat. That's because we typically think of surrender in terms of warfare, in which one side concedes defeat to an enemy. In the case of God, however, we're surrendering to our ally! While His ways are inscrutable, too lofty and complex to understand (Isaiah 55:8–9), He is, nonetheless, for us. He's on our side. Therefore, we take a giant leap forward in dealing with difficult people when we say, "Thank You, Lord, for this painful experience of being maligned, misunderstood, and mistreated." David finally reached this point. He was able to give thanks to God, even in the midst of ongoing personal strife.
Let me point out that David did not live in denial. He didn't try to manufacture good feelings about his enemies. He didn't whitewash their sins or glibly excuse their sinfulness. Nor did he retaliate. He chose to focus on God's faithfulness instead. Rather than allow his mind to be consumed by the wrongdoing of others, their terrible motives, and his own imagination of God's justice coming down upon them, David devoted himself to worship. When he did this, he was able to say, "It is good," referring to God's name. David's trouble continued. His tormenters had not yet retreated. Still, he was able to declare the name and the deeds of God "good."
Used with permission. All rights reserved.

From Nancy~April 2013

Lord, give me the grace to accept life right where

it has put me, and help me to overcome the fear

that would waste my days. Give me the wisdom

and desire to make every day count for You.

Life matters—make the most of it!

Marcy sent April 2013

Hebrews 12:10-13 NIV

They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees. “Make level paths for your feet,” so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed.

Why does BAD happen?

SATURDAY, APRIL 6, 2013 Why Do Bad Things Happen to Good People? If I decided how my day were to go, I would never write in "crisis." I would never write, "Get sick" here or "Have my tire go flat" there, or "Have this unexpected disaster take place." I would just write in all the good stuff. I would plan for everything to go my way. There would be no traffic on the freeways. It would always be green lights and blue skies. But guess what? We're not in charge of our lives. God is. I love what the prophet once admitted to the Lord: "O Lord, I know the way of man is not in himself; it is not in man who walks to direct his own steps" (Jeremiah10:23, NKJV). The fact is, God will allow so-called "bad things" to happen to us in the course of our days. But as time goes by, you will find that the significant things you learn in life didn't really come from the good times and the mountaintop experiences. They came from those times of crisis in which you were more dependent on God. Many of the most difficult days will, in retrospect, turn out to be unbelievably valuable, because it is through those so-called "bad times" that you will learn some of life's most important lessons. The things we experience are not random events that float in and out of our lives. Rather, they are specific events that have been chosen by God and are timely and purposeful. This means the good things as well as the bad things. It means the wonderful, happy times of life as well as the dark, difficult days. When you put your faith in Jesus Christ, you come under His protective care. God is fully aware of everything that happens to you, and thankfully He is never asleep on the job. He pays careful attention to the smallest details of your life and is in complete in control of all circumstances that surround you. He knows what's happening in your life right now—knows it better than you do. And His presence and provision will be all you need to make it through.

Hope!

Nothing Helps Like Hope
by Charles R. Swindoll

Let us hold fast the confession 
of our hope without wavering, 
for He who promised is faithful.
Hebrews 10:23

Hope is a wonderful gift from God, a source of strength and courage in the face of life's harshest trials.

When we are trapped in a tunnel of misery, hope points to the light at the end.

When we are overworked and exhausted, hope gives us fresh energy.

When we are discouraged, hope lifts our spirits.

When we are tempted to quit, hope keeps us going.

When we struggle with a crippling disease or a lingering illness, hope helps us persevere beyond the pain.

When we fear the worst, hope brings reminders that God is still in control.

When we are forced to sit back and wait, hope gives us the patience to trust.

Put simply, when life hurts and dreams fade, nothing helps like hope.

Do I follow?

For Such a Time   "For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father's house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?" —Esther 4:14 When Esther won a beauty contest and ascended the throne in ancient Persia, she was a Jew. But she kept that information quiet. And one day, because of the wicked efforts on the part of a man named Haman, there was a plot conceived to have all of the Jews in the empire destroyed. But Esther's uncle, Mordecai, came to her and essentially said, "You are there in the palace. You are in a place of influence. You can go to the king and speak on behalf of your people." But then he added this telling statement: "If you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father's house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?" (Esther4:14). The idea behind Mordecai's statement was this: "God put you where you are for a reason. Now, are you going to leverage that opportunity for God's kingdom, or are you going to keep it all to yourself? Guess what? If you don't do it, the Lord will find someone else." God has put you where you are today. You have a sphere of influence. You have a circle of friends. You have neighbors around you. You have coworkers and others with whom you come in contact on a regular basis. Will you go to them? Or will you run from them? You might ask, "Well, if I don't go, will the job still get done?" As a matter of fact, it will get done. The reality is that God doesn't need you. Certainly God doesn't need me. But God does want us to participate in the process. When God says go, what will you say?

Wait on him

SATURDAY, JANUARY 12, 2013 Big Dreams? Be Faithful. Do you have big dreams to accomplish something great for God? I have some advice for you: Be faithful in the little things and God will give you more to do. When David was called by God to be king, he was out watching sheep, just being faithful. The day David killed Goliath, he didn't wake up that morning and hear God say, "David, today you are going to the valley of Elah. There will be a giant Philistine named Goliath, and you will kill him with a stone." No, at his dad's request, David was taking some cheese sandwiches to his brothers out on the front line. . .just being faithful on an errand for his dad. What was Gideon doing when God called him? He was hiding from his enemies. He was terrified. But God saw his potential, and the next thing Gideon knew, he was leading troops into battle. And what was Elisha doing when Elijah called him to carry on the work? He was out plowing in the field. Moses was watching a bunch of sheep in the desert when God called him to deliver the Israelites. Then there was Daniel, who was so faithful to the Lord that his enemies couldn't find one thing wrong with him. They had to make up lies about him so that he would be sentenced to death. And how about that teenage girl named Mary living in Nazareth who had a visit from one of God's most powerful angels, with a message about a Child, who would be called the Son of the Most High? My point is this: They were faithfully doing what God had set before them. They weren't running around, looking for big, important things to accomplish. They didn't have public relations consultants or agents. They were simply doing the little things, waiting on God. Sometimes, we have great ideas of what God will do. But we have to wait on Him. What are your dreams right now? Maybe you want to do something for God, but you think it will never happen. Then again. . .maybe it will. Maybe it even will surpass your wildest dreams. Just be faithful to do what God has set before you right now. Your future is safe in His hands.

Lest we forget

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 9, 2013

Remember God

	"Remember the Lord your God. He is the one who gives you power to be successful, in order to fulfill the covenant he confirmed to your ancestors with an oath."

—Deuteronomy 8:18

Why does God allow suffering in our lives? Why does He allow us to experience adversity?

One purpose, I believe, is to keep us humble. Prosperity and success can sometimes make us proud and self-sufficient. We think we don't need God because we have our salary...we have our investments...we have our health...we have our family...we have a successful ministry.

But when the economy goes south or the stock market crashes or our home burns down, we turn to God, and we are reminded of what really matters.

Before the Israelites entered the Promised Land, God warned them,

"Beware that in your plenty you do not forget the Lord your God and disobey his commands, regulations, and decrees that I am giving you today. For when you have become full and prosperous and have built fine homes to live in, and when your flocks and herds have become very large and your silver and gold have multiplied along with everything else, be careful! Do not become proud at that time and forget the Lord your God..." (Deuteronomy 8:11-14)

I think we should pray for success in what we do, but I also think it is right to say, "Lord, Your will be done." Sometimes God will not allow us to be successful in our efforts.

It is better to fail and turn to God than to succeed and forget Him. That doesn't mean we always have to fail. But the doorway to success is often through the hallway of failure. And failure has its place, because it is part of a learning process.

Sometimes God may allow us to fail or experience hardship so we will trust in Him.

Worship

Worship and Wisdom

1 Kings 3:4–15
Dark clouds slip between the guardian mountain peaks and scurry across the empty skies above Death Valley in California. Heat waves tremble over the parched earth as cloud shadows nibble at the eroded badlands and salt pans. Thunder rumbles in the distance. By late afternoon, the rain-gorged sky swings low. Suddenly the heavens burst! Fat raindrops jump like marbles on the hard-packed earth. Gradually the thirsty brown clods drink in water, softening to soak in more. A curtain of silver rain hangs between the churning sky and muddy valley floor. In a few weeks, Death Valley will explode to life in an astonishing feast of wildflowers.
Upon ascending to the throne, young Solomon traveled ten miles northwest to the hills of Gibeon to offer an extravagant sacrifice—a thousand burnt offerings. This was the same place where the sun stood still for Joshua and where twelve of David’s strong men defeated twelve of Saul’s men (seeJoshua 10:1–14; 2 Samuel 2:12–17). In the middle of the night, God burst through to Solomon in a dream. Solomon could have requested anything in all the earth. Through time spent in worship, Solomon realized that wisdom was the greatest of all God’s gifts.
Worship is like the rains that prepare the earth for God’s blessings. The story of the youthful Solomon preparing to take the throne is a beautiful reminder to us of the importance of worship. The story of God granting him the gift of wisdom opens with a swell of costly and reverent worship. For us, too, worship creates a context for us to encounter God; it sets our souls in motion in an upward spiral by which we pursue God, and he gladly responds.
Worship book-ended the exchange between the Sovereign God and the new sovereign of Israel. Solomon returned from his heavenly encounter and again made an offering to the God of Israel in Jerusalem before the ark of the covenant.
Like a gathering cloud, worship encircles and protects God’s people. It softens the soil of our hearts like nourishing rain. When we’ve been in a dark place and long for colorful beauty to replace the hardness that has settled into our scorched souls, simple acts of worship can prepare the way for God’s words of wisdom to permeate our hearts. If your life seems parched, won’t you allow God to paint a palette of colorful joy by spending time worshiping your Lord?

Reflection

1. Why is worship so important to God?
2. What kinds of extravagant (or at least consistent) worship characterize your life?
3. If God offered you anything you wish, what would you ask for? Has it changed having read this passage?

1 Kings 3:5, 15
At Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon during the night in a dream, and God said, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you” . . . He returned to Jerusalem, stood before the ark of the Lord’s covenant and sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings.

Related Readings

Psalms 29; 100; Proverbs 3:13–24; Isaiah 55:10–12