Remember when . . .

How often they rebelled against him in the wilderness and grieved him in the desert!  They tested God again and again and provoked the Holy One of Israel.  They did not remember his power or the day when he redeemed them from the foe.  (Psalm 78:41, 42)  


Aren't we forgetful?  God does amazing things for us one day, and a week later we are questioning His treatment of us again.  Red Sea today, whining tomorrow.  We need to become better rememberers!   


When the chips are down, whatever that means, and life seems to be getting in the way of your dreams and hopes, remember what God has done for you.  He is the same yesterday, today and forever!  The same God who took care of you and rescued you yesterday has you in the palm of His hand today.  Remember.  


Psalm 63 says it well:  My soul will be satisfied with fat and rich food, and my mouth with praise you with joyful lips, when I remember you upon my bed, and meditate on you in the watches of the night [when we are most likely to forget Him and worry!]; for you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy.  


There is the possibility of singing for joy in the shadows of our lives, provided those shadows are the shadows of His wings, buried in His safe arms, trusting that He will care for us like He always has.  


Do you have stories of remembrance to share?  Please do; they would encourage us all.  

But . . .

This winter was so dreamy, wasn't it?  Full of "buts", I think.  January, but mild.  February, but warm.  March, but buds?  April, but blossoms and flowers and green and 70's!!  To think that we actually got to wear our Easter clothes on Easter.

Speaking of "buts", the Psalms are full of them.  Here are just a few I found this morning, that would make us weep if we understood their full implications:

                     Yet you have made him a little lower than the angels, and crowned him with 
                     glory and honor.  (Psalm 8:5)   That's us David is talking about here, after
                     describing the amazing works of God's hand, the heavens and all they contain.

                     But the Lord sits enthroned forever; he has established his throne for justice. 
                     (Psalm 9) This is after describing the wicked and their fate.  So is this next one.

                     But you do see, for you note mischief and vexation, that you may take it into
                     your hands; to you the helpless commits himself; you have been the helper 
                     of the fatherless.  (Psalm 10:14)

So we are not shaken, though the earth gives way and the mountains be moved into the 
heart of the sea (Psalm 46:2).  For you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you 
(Psalm 9:10).

Find your own "buts" in Scripture, and rejoice that God is not like us, but is over us and governs all things in justice and love.

                   

Pink Delights

I gasped when I first turned the corner years ago and saw this park full of pink clouds; and this year it is just as breath-taking. You've noticed the blossoms as well, no doubt. What a delight to the eyes. And a delight for God to give them and to see our enjoyment of them.

We don't often think of God as a God of delight; we think more of His love, His righteousness and holiness, even His keeping an eye on things. But delight? Not really.

And yet, if anyone has the capacity for delight, it is the One who created all these amazements. He isn't burdened by the stresses of everyday life, by the unexpected turns that trip us up. He can fully enjoy all He has made; in fact, He proclaimed it "very good".

The Scriptures give us clues as to what delights God. Jeremiah 9: Let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the Lord. And again in Jeremiah 32, speaking to His covenant people: I will rejoice in doing them good, and I will plant them in this land in faithfulness, with all my heart and all my soul.

You see, God is not compelled to do us good, we do not force His hand by our pitiable state and cries for help. No, indeed. Our God delights to do us good, He delights to delight us, His plan for us is one of good and not of evil, to give us a future and a hope (Jeremiah 29:11). And if you don't yet believe me, read Isaiah 62; I think you'll be convinced that you are a delight to the Lord.

Why? Christ has washed you clean by His blood. You are His.

So why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to Me, and eat what is good [God's Word and His Son] and delight yourselves in rich food (Isaiah 55:2).

And then delight in God's gifts, knowing that makes Him glad.

Well, it's that time again: April!

And you know what April means, don't you? Besides showers and flowers peeking up and spring breaks and Easter and getting the white shoes out of storage?

The Ladies' Conference. You knew that, didn't you?

We offer all sorts of good things: good food, good teaching, and even cute aprons.

Here are the details: Friday evening and Saturday, April 27 & 28 at New Hope Church. Mary Beth McGreevy will be exhorting us from God's Word, especially with regard to Jesus' relationship with Peter and with us. Cost: $20.

Sign up this weekend in the narthex. You really don't want to miss it.

Choosing to Hope

We do get into dark places, don't we? (This one is at the Goddard Mansion in Maine.) We get into places that are dark because of the sin of others against us, because of our own sin, or just because the pre-Revelation world can be a very dark place.

But today, a friend of mine mentioned a remedy that is available to all of us: We need to choose to hope. That touched me in a very deep place, as simple as it sounds. God is our hope. "Christ in us, the hope of glory" (Colossians 1:27). "On Him we have set our hope, that He will deliver us again" (2 Corinthians 1:10). "I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery" (Exodus 20:2).

And Pastor Scotty Smith, in his prayer yesterday (http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/scottysmith/) reminds us, because we need to be reminded, "there never has been, nor will there ever be, any nervous sweat, furrowed brows or anxious pacing in heaven. There will never be one moment of consternation or vexation in the corridors of paradise; no need for a plan B to emerge from the 'big boardroom'."

So what do we do with this knowledge? We choose to hope. Hope that God can handle our lives and our circumstances, hope that we are never out of His care, hope that all things will work together for our good and His glory, rejoice in a hope that never disappoints, because "God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us" (Romans 5:5).

And we know the God who promises all these things. He will surely do it. He is the God who brought us out of the land of slavery.

So choose, this day, to hope. And "may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope" (Romans 15:13).

A Prayer about the Incomparable Riches of God

This year I have been "devotioning" with Scotty Smith from Christ Community Church in Nashville.  I mentioned his book, Everyday Prayers, in a book review a few weeks back.  Fortunately for all of us, you can also find his daily prayers at the site below.  Read this one, and then read them daily as a reminder of the God who "brought us out of slavery in Egypt" and became to us, to me!, the Redeemer God.

A Prayer about the Incomparable Riches of God’s Grace and Kindness

Exalting when it's hard

Hannah: "My heart exults in the Lord; my strength is exalted in the Lord. My mouth derides my enemies, because I rejoice in your salvation. There is none holy like the Lord; there is none besides you; there is no rock like our God." (1 Samuel 2:1-2)

My heart never ceases to wonder at Hannah's ability to praise God as she is delivering her preschool son over to Eli and his wicked sons to look after, herself traveling back home without him. As for me, I can hardly say goodbye to my 20-somethings when they leave home. And could I send my five-year old to school? Not on your life. Yet Hannah hands over her probably three-year old to an undisciplined priest and his evil sons. And then sings an astonishing song of exaltation to God.

This would be me: "If you don't really need my little Samuel just yet, Lord, speak now and I'll take him home." This would move quickly to: "Please, please, please, don't make me leave him here!"

Not Hannah. She thanks God for her son, and rejoices in God's greatness. Here is a woman who knows what it means that children are a gift from the Lord (Psalm 127), who understands that our children are our stewardship, not our possessions, who really gets the truth that life is not about her but about the Creator God's glory.

Here is a woman who knows God, and has chosen, at profound cost to herself, to honor Him above all else. Oh, that that woman would be me.

And the women said to Naomi,

"Blessed be the Lord, who has not left you this day without a redeemer, and may his name be renowned in Israel!" (Ruth 4:14)

The very same might be said of us, God's people, this very day, as we kneel at the cross, rejoicing in our redemption wrought there. He has not left us without a redeemer, for Christ has redeemed us.

Redeemed us from what? It does us good to remember. He has redeemed us from the curse of the law, which we could not keep, even for one minute. Like Isaiah, we must say, "Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips" (Isaiah 6:5). Just meditate on your behavior, thoughts, and words of the last 24 hours, and you'll see what I mean.

Yet, we have been redeemed, rescued from ourselves and from the curse we deserve, at the cross. This is the most amazing news any of us will ever hear or tell. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in him (2 Corinthians 5:21).

Blessed be the Lord, who has not left us this day without a redeemer!

"I come to the garden alone, while the dew is still on the roses" speaks of times alone with the Lord. We pray, we listen, we learn.

Nancy Guthrie in the Gospel Coalition blog today speaks of prayer in a way I've rarely heard. This is really good stuff. Please read and be challenged as I was.

http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/tgc/2012/04/04/praying-past-preferred-outcomes

Thank you, Sarah, for sharing this!

Exhausted yet pursuing

It's a cold day in Cleveland, Tennessee, and yet these young people are doing their workout. Saturday morning, no less. Many miles. It speaks of a self-discipline that I lack.

This weekend I read of another group of self-disciplined ones, Gideon and his men who were pursuing the kings of Midian after they had defeated the Midianites in battle. Correction: after God had defeated the Midianites in battle as Gideon and his 300-strong army blew their trumpets and looked on. But the kings were still on the loose, being chased by Gideon and his minuscule army. Judges 8:4: And Gideon came to the Jordan and crossed over, he and the 300 men who were with him, exhausted yet pursuing.

Isn't that a great description? How can we apply that to our Christian lives? What are we pursuing? Psalm 34, Romans 14 and 1 Peter 3 say "peace". 1 Corinthians 14 says "love". Paul tells Timothy twice to pursue "righteousness, godliness, faith, love, and peace". We ought to be pursuing these things even if exhausted from the pursuit, knowing that it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure (Philippians 2:13).

Mostly, though, I think we are to be pursuing the God who pursued us at the cost of His own Son, to be looking at what He has done, meditating on it, observing His glory in His world and in His mighty acts on our behalf. Let us not tire of looking; let us pursue the knowledge and grace of God while yet exhausted.

So, as we remember this week especially the wonders God has wrought on our behalf, take this familiar Scripture to heart: Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God (Hebrews 12:1-2).

May it be said of us what was said of Gideon; may we be exhausted yet pursuing.