November 30, 2023

Psalm 105: 4 Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always. (NIV)

We may speak about a place where there are no tears, no death, no fear, no night; but those are just the benefits of heaven. The beauty of heaven is seeing God.*

We all know that when we’ve lost something we always find it in the last place we look – no point in looking anywhere else if you’ve found it. With that principle in mind, we might think that the psalmist, by telling us to seek the Lord’s face always, is implying that we will never find it. Now there’s a sad thought. Could it be that we misunderstand his meaning?

According to St. Augustine’s interpretation, seeking God’s face always isn’t just an ongoing earthly task but an activity that continues on into eternity. Not because God won’t let us see his face but because “God is so great that we never finish our searching. He is always new.”* 

Now we get the picture – not of something lost or hidden – but of something that we never get tired of looking at. So, now, the psalmist’s words sound like good advice, because if you’re going to get tired of seeking the Lord’s face, eternity isn’t going to be so pleasant for you.

Just how much are you looking forward to seeing the Lord’s face? Personally, the older I get, the more I long for it. Is it because I am getting older and nearer to death? Maybe there is some truth in that. But the heart of my longing is found in the words of a song: the longer I serve him, the sweeter he grows. I really look forward to being in the Lord’s presence. I hope you do, too!

Heaven will seem more like a long-awaited homecoming than a visit to a new place.*

November 29, 2023

Mark 6: 6 And he was amazed at their lack of faith. (NIV)

Put some people in a room and they behold no more than a blind horse would.*

What is the stupidest thing you’ve ever seen another human do (besides in traffic)? It’s hard to decide who gets the prize, isn’t it? In the college cafeteria, I saw a guy pour a glassful of Kool-Aid in his face because he was trying to read the logo on the bottom of the glass. Come to think of it, I’ve done stupider things than that myself. People will continue to amaze us – because I am sure we haven’t seen everything yet!

This verse gives us a peek into the humanity of Jesus. We aren’t told that he was amazed at the stupidity of the people in his hometown, but don’t you think it’s implied? His fellow Nazarenes were amazed by his teaching, his wisdom, and his miracles, and yet they couldn’t piece the clues together to form the logical conclusion: Jesus was the Messiah. Instead, they couldn’t get past his past: Isn’t he the carpenter? Isn’t he Mary’s boy? Didn’t I go to school with his brothers and sisters? And so, Jesus, who really had seen everything, was amazed at their lack of faith.

I don’t know if I’ve ever done anything that Jesus would consider to be amazing in a positive way but I would hope that I have never amazed him by my lack of faith. Perhaps my faith has been weak at times. And certainly I have been disobedient, rebellious, and indifferent; but how could I ever have no faith at all? There has never been a time when Jesus has not lived up to my faith in him.

What about you? Have you put the clues together and concluded that Jesus can be trusted? Or have you been distracted by your mistaken expectations of who he is and what he promises? Have you ever tested him by taking a step of faith, allowing him the chance to amaze you with his faithfulness? Or will you be among those who amaze him with their lack of faith?

A faith that can’t be tested can’t be trusted.*

November 28, 2023

II Kings 4: 1-7 The wife of a man from the company of the prophets cried out to Elisha, “. . . my husband is dead . . . and he revered the Lord. But now his creditor is coming to take my two boys as his slaves.” Elisha replied . . . “How can I help you? . . . what do you have in your house?” “. . . nothing at all,” she said, “except a little oil.” . . . “Go . . . ask all your neighbors for empty jars. . . . Pour oil into all the jars, and as each is filled, put it to one side.” . . . When all the jars were full . . . Then the oil stopped flowing. . . . “Go, sell the oil and pay your debts. You and your son can live on what is left.” (NIV)

God is the God of limitless resources who can provide incredibly for us when we are in need.*

How many of you hate to ask for help? . . . Show of hands . . . For some of you it’s a cultural thing – we Americans are pretty independent (since 1776, as a matter of fact!). For some, it’s a bit of a personality disorder: I don’t need nobody for nothin’. For anyone: is there a scriptural reason why we shouldn’t ask others to lend us a hand?

This story about Elisha and a widow down-on-her-luck resonates with me right now. My husband recently passed away from pancreatic cancer. This woman was probably a lot younger than I am – she has two “boys” so I’m assuming they are still children – but had very few resources. A little oil. I don’t know what kind of oil we’re talking about – cooking? heating? light? – but it wasn’t enough for her and her sons to survive on. Until she asked for help. She shared her problem with a man of God – always a good place to start – and God used him to bless her.

Notice that Elisha didn’t just swoop in and solve her problems for her. He was a prophet, not a knight in shining armor. He empowered her to help herself by introducing her to another resource: her neighbors. She was instructed to ask all her neighbors for empty jars. We don’t know if she got around to all of them; or if all of them had empty jars to donate; or even how many neighbors she had; but she came home with jars and filled them with oil until she ran out of jars. Do you imagine that she thought then of the neighbors she didn’t want to bother? If only I had asked for more jars!

Maybe we, too, limit our blessings: by being afraid to speak up; by not putting out enough containers; by not having enough faith in God’s provision. Perhaps we underestimate the resources that are available to us. The widow had neighbors. Do you have family? friends? fellow church-members? Will you allow them to help? Are you a good steward of what you do have? Are you willing to trust in God’s provision? Are you prepared to receive God’s blessings? Never forget that he is able to do immeasurably more than we can ask – or imagine! (Ephesians 3: 20)

God used what the woman gave him and did more with it than she could have done alone.*