That's Messed Up!

A New Start – Day 9

A few days ago, I wrote about Isaac and the fact that his name means laughter.  He must have had a sense of humor because his twin sons’ names can be translated “Red” and “Trickster.”  It is that trickster, Jacob, whom I noticed in my reading today.  In yesterday’s reading, Jacob tricked his brother out of his rights as the firstborn.  Today, with his mother’s help, he tricked his aged and blind father into giving him the blessings as the firstborn. 

In Genesis 29, today’s final chapter, the tables get turned on him.  He has worked for his uncle for seven years for the right to marry his cousin Rachel.  It is dark when his bride is brought to his tent and he does not realize until morning that it is Rachel’s sister Leah.  He is later given Rachel as a second wife, but has to work another seven years for her.

Suffice it to say that the situation in today’s reading is messed up!  We have this guy who deceives his brother and father and who ends up with two wives (and later, two concubines).  Finally, we have this uncle who sends in the wrong sister on the wedding night.  There’s a whole lot wrong with this situation.  Still, in the long run, despite how horribly messed up it is, God uses it.

Are you in a messed up situation?  Does it seem like no good can come of it? 

Jacob did not see until many years later some of the good from his situation.  Even then, he never saw the ultimate good that came out of it.  Jacob was later named Israel.  It was from Israel, even from the unloved substitute wife, Leah, that the Messiah came from.  Out of the midst of deception and questionable morality came He who saved the world.

God can use your situation as well.  No matter how messed up your life may be, He can make good come of it.  In fact He can make more good things than you can imagine come from it, though you may not see the results this side of heaven.  If your situation is messed up, ask God to give you a glimpse of the good that will result from it.  Watch for His answer.  You may be surprised!  Know that He will ultimately use your situation to bless.

A New Start – Day 8

When I was a kid, my dad got into astronomy.  He bought a telescope and would teach us kids about the stars and planets and show us them in the night sky.  It was fascinating to me.  Now it is easy to forget about the vastness of the sky.  Every couple years or so, I will head up to the mountains at night and watch a meteor shower or just check out the sky.  Even with my poor eyesight, it amazes my how many stars I can see and how vast the universe seems.

King David, in Psalm 8:3-4 says, “When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have ordained, what is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit him?” (NKJV)

Consider this – the same Creator who spoke the heavens into existence, is mindful of you and me!  He who has the immense power to create the universe with a whisper cares about you!  Verse 2 of that same Psalm reads, “Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants You have ordained strength, because of Your enemies, that You may silence the enemy and the avenger.”  If He can use babies to silence His enemies, how much more can He use you or me?

I think that one of the reasons that He can use children is that they don’t let their preconceptions get in the way of their belief.  Let’s toss aside or thoughts of why God cannot do great things through us and live out the faith that created the heavens.  Like that young boy who looked in awe at the night sky forty years ago, let’s stand in awe of what the Lord can do even now. 

“Oh Lord, our Lord, how excellent is your name in all of the earth!” Psalm 8:9 (NKJV)

Abandon Fear

A New Start – Day 7

In 1990, we decided to move from California to Virginia.  It was kind of a crazy decision as I was leaving a good job and all my friends.  In Virginia was my mom and my sister and a few friends but mostly the unknown.  When we got there, I had a hard time finding a good job and we went through some very lean months.  In the end it turned out very well.  I started the career that I am still in today.  We made some life-long friends.  I even was able to go to our church’s Bible College that we did not realize was there when we moved.  Still, it was a crazy decision to move there made by an immature young couple.

In today’s reading, in Genesis chapter 24, Rebekah makes what seems like a crazy decision.  Here is this young lady, probably in her teens, faced with the choice of leaving her family and home to travel to a foreign land to marry a cousin whom she has never met.  What was she thinking?  What would you think?  She did not hesitate but went to be Isaac’s wife.

Is God calling you to do something that seems crazy?  I will not tell you to abandon wisdom, but I will tell you to abandon fear.  If fear is the only thing that is keeping you from stepping out into something new, leave it behind like Rebekah left her birthplace behind.  Examine the choices before you in light of God’s Word and your situation.  In wisdom, purity, and faith; move out into the new challenges that God has for you! 

A New Start – Day 6

According to Babycenter.com, the top unusual baby names of 2012 included Juju, Fedora, Shoog, Sanity, Burger, Google, Hurricane, and my favorite, Jedi.  In my opinion, none of those names can hold a candle to the baby name I read about today.  Abraham and Sarah named their son Laughter.  True, in Hebrew it is Isaac, but that would be the same as naming you child Laughter today.  As one who loves to laugh, I think that is hilarious.

The reason for the unusual name was the age of the parents.  Abraham was 100 and Sarah was 90 when Isaac was born.  When Sarah overheard angels telling Abraham that they would have a child, she laughed because she assumed that it was impossible. 

One of the things that gives me great joy is seeing the impossible happen.  I have seen people healed after many years of sickness.  I have seen those who have lived lives full of addictions and strife experience full deliverance from those situations.  I have seen families in the midst of collapse fully recover.  All these things make me happy!

For some reason, many think that Christians can’t have a sense of humor.  The name of Isaac is just one of many examples in the Bible of God's sense of humor.  I say that we lighten up and get laughter and joy from what we see every day. 

Regardless of your situation, seek the humor in each situation.  Let laughter ease your burden.  If you are in a tough situation, know that God is in the business of pulling off the impossible.  While you wait, look to Abraham and Sarah and laugh at the way God answered their prayers.

If you need a little laughter, here’s a guy who can help with that.

A New Start – Day 3

Have you ever cried out to the Lord, “Why me?”  Perhaps you have had one of those days where nothing seems to go right.  Maybe last year was one of those years.

I have definitely had those years in the past.  A verse from today’s reading helps explain how I have managed to get through –

Psalm 3:3 (NKJV) – “But You, O Lord, are a shield for me, My glory and the One who lifts up my head.”

Some would say that no bad can come to those who truly believe and proclaim that verse.  If that is so, why would my head need to be lifted?  The way I see it, the Lord has and will see me through everything, good and bad.  I have been in some impossible situations and have made it through.  I have had times when life has been so bad that I just wanted to sleep through it.  The Lord has lifted my head to see Him and to help me trust that He will always see me through. 

Some may think that trusting in Jesus is like insurance for the afterlife.  I can tell you that it is life here and now.  God has lifted my head and brought me courage and strength to make it through many difficult times.  He has brought me joy in the midst of sorrow and peace in the midst of chaos.  If you don’t believe me, call me up and I can share some stories. 

If you are discouraged, depressed, angry, or frustrated today, look to the One who can lift up your head.  Ask Him for strength.  Find someone who is close to God for help to get through.  May the Lord’s blessing be on you!

Lessons from Noah

A New Start – Day 2

I just traveled for three days in a comfortable minivan with six other people.  Imagine what it was like for Noah traveling for nearly a year with seven other people and thousands of animals.  There is much to learn from the account of Noah –

Righteousness – Noah was found to be righteous before God.

Not giving in to peer-pressure – All the rest of the inhabitants of the earth had become corrupt and violent.  Noah stayed righteous.

Obedience to God, even when it seems crazy! – God told Noah to build an ark on dry land for flooding that the earth had never known.  Noah obeyed.

Patience – It would have taken Noah many years to build the ark.  He did not give up, but persevered and finished it according to the plans God gave him.  Then he waited for the animals to come on board.  Then he was cooped up in the ark for nearly a year during the flood.  In all these things he never gave up.

God is a person, experiencing emotions. – Many think that God must have been angry and vindictive to flood the earth.  The truth is found in Genesis 6:6 (NLT) –“So the Lord was sorry He had ever made them and put them on the earth.  It broke His heart.”  It was in sorrow that God allowed the flood waters to cover the earth and wipe out the evil in it.  With a broken heart, He started over with Noah.

Do you need a new start?  Is there evil in your life that needs to be flushed out?  Follow the example of Noah and act on the radical compassion of God that would seek to make you new.  Let God wash away any evil that is causing you and Him sorrow.

A New Start

A New Start – Day 1 –

I love to travel.  This first day of the New Year marks the last day of the biggest vacation of the last year.  Over the last two weeks we have seen the frozen prairies and Tulsa coated in ice.  We have inched our way through a flooded Arkansas town and through the rolling hills of the South.  We have basked in the Florida sunshine and played in the Gulf of Mexico.  We have experienced southern hospitality and the intelligence of dolphins.  We have seen the man-made wonders of the St. Louis Arch and several large cities.  Finally, we survived the cough and fever filled drive home.

Despite the difficulties of driving, I tend to prefer it mainly because of getting to see the variety of creation, both man-made and God-made.  I know that the grand buildings and bridges we saw on the way each had a designer and builder.  I also know that the majestic mountains, wide prairies, and vast oceans also had a Creator.  This morning I got to read about the creation process in Genesis 1-3.  I am not going to debate whether it was a literal six days of creation or not here.  What matters to me is that God expressed His creative talents in unimaginable ways when He designed and built this world.  I could only stand in awe as I heard the roaring waves and see the brightly painted sky at sunset at Clearwater Beach.  It amazes me when I considered the intricacies of each of the millions of snowflakes we saw on the way home today.

I challenge you today to look around you and really see the artwork in what you see.  It may be a sculpture or it may be a mountain.  It has designer.  Give the credit where it is due!  Let God know what you think about His creation. 

If you like, start the year off right by starting at the very beginning of God’s Word and read the creation story in Genesis.