THE LORD OUR REFUGE

Nahum 1:7  The LORD is good.  When trouble comes, he is a strong refuge.  And he knows everyone who trusts in him.  NLT

      We need to know this; we MUST know this.  God is a strong refuge when trouble comes.  There is no trouble that we may experience that is greater than God’s ability to handle.  Most of us know what it is to have troublesome times.  Sometimes we are the root cause of it and many times we aren’t.  What really defines our character is how we handle trouble. 

      We can look at our troubles and cry and moan about them.  Many people are good whiners when trouble comes.  They bemoan the fact that things are not going as they think they should.  They complain instead of striving to make positive changes to get themselves out of their troubles.

      Some of us face trouble with no clue as to how to help ourselves get out of it.  The size of the trouble overwhelms us and controls how we think and feel.  Instead of focusing on how great our God is, they think how great their trouble is.  They forget God’s promises of help and deliverance.  God takes a backseat to their troubles.

       One of the things that often happens during troublesome times is to neglect one’s time alone with the Lord.  This is the worst thing that we can do.  Our help comes from the Lord!  When we neglect the Word of God and prayer, God no longer is in the forefront of our hearts and minds.  We must stay connected with the Lord if we are going to find help in Him.

      The right response to trouble is to take refuge in the Lord.  It is trusting in God’s care and His ability to help us out of trouble.  It is not wavering in our confidence that God will help us.  It looks positively at the help that is ours in Christ.  It is believing that all things do work out for those who love the Lord.  It is seeing life with eternity in view instead of the momentary troubles of life. 

      The Lord is the only strong and safe refuge for the troubled soul.  He will always help those who seek refuge in Him.  He knows His children by name.  He knows our weaknesses.  He knows our struggles.  He knows our needs.  As the old hymn writer put it, “Jesus is our rock in a weary land…a shelter in the time of storm.” 

      Whether you are in a stormy place in your life right now or not, Jesus is our strong refuge.  Take shelter under His loving wings.

GOD IS JEALOUS

 

Nahum 1:2-3  This message concerning Nineveh came as a vision to Nahum, who lived in Elkosh.  The LORD is a jealous God, filled with vengeance and wrath.  He takes revenge on all who oppose him and furiously destroys his enemies!  The LORD is slow to get angry, but his power is great, and he never lets the guilty go unpunished......  NLT

 

       The Lord is a jealous God.  For the most part, we don’t act like He is.  We don’t give the Lord all of the attention He deserves in our lives.  We give Him a place in our lives, but not THE place.  We put more emphasis on other things than we do our relationship with Him.  We need to remember; the Lord is a jealous God.

 

       The Lord is filled with vengeance and wrath.  He is holy and will not tolerate sin in His presence.  He judges all sin and shows no mercy to those who reject and defy Him.

 

       The Lord is slow to get angry, and I am so glad He is.  He is very patient, but it does run out.  He will judge all those who push Him away and live in sin.  He created hell especially for them and it is perfectly suited to punish them for all eternity. 

 

        The power of the Lord is great.  There is no limit to His power.  He has the power to help all who want to stay out of hell stay out of it.  He has the power to forgive sins and remember them no more.  He has the power to make all things right, and He will.

 

        The Lord will never let the guilty go unpunished.  No one will get away with sin.  No one.  Everyone will stand before God and give an account for his life.  The Lord will look on the soul and if He sees sin instead of the righteousness of Christ, He will cast the soul into hell.

 

        Pay attention to Nahum’s message today; eternity is at stake.

GOD'S REQUIREMENTS

 

Micah 6:8  No, O people, the LORD has already told you what is good, and this is what he requires: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.  NLT

      The requirements of the Lord are obvious to anyone who wants to honestly know them.  He makes it clear that we are to do what is right before Him.  What is right in God’s eyes often is different than what we think is right.  God’s Word is the standard by which we evaluate our actions.  Are we living right before God?  The ways of man should never determine how we are doing in our living.

       We need to love mercy.  That is, we should love to withhold retribution from those who deserve punishment.  Now, I am not saying that we should not mete out punishment to those who sin against the common good of society.  People need to be held accountable for things done that are harmful and dangerous for the public.  I am not suggesting that we should put our heads in the sand and ignore it when people do wrong.  But, as children of God, it ought to be a way of life for us to show mercy towards those who wrong us, especially when they repent and ask for forgiveness.  We are to love our neighbor and be driven by a forgiving heart rather than a vengeful heart. 

      We must walk humbly with God.  There is no room for pride in our walk with the Lord.  We understand that He alone is to be praised.  We know that who we are, what we are and whatever we accomplish in life are because of God’s grace and blessings.  We don’t live for ourselves.  We live always to honor Him who has saved us and blessed us. 

      It is good for us to acknowledge the role the Lord plays in our lives.  It is good to know that we owe Him all the praise for the life we live.  It is good for us to understand that the very essence of life is in Him and Him alone.

WHAT IS GOOD

Micah 6:8 No, O people, the LORD has already told you what is good, and this is what he requires: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.  NLT

      The Lord is not mysterious about how to live a life pleasing to Him.  He makes it very clear that the righteous shun evil and live right before Him.  He vividly details what living right before Him means in practical living.  Being good before God entails doing what is right, loving mercy, and walking humbly before God.

       Doing what is right is simply living a godly life.  It is simply taking the Word of God and striving to live it.  It is turning one’s back on what is evil and taking on the righteousness of Christ.  Godly living is soul building.  It is all that helps us be like God in character.  Doing what is right is what pleases God.

      Loving mercy is treating people better than they deserve to be treated.  It is letting God take care of the judgment of their souls.  It is striving to focus on the good in people instead of the bad.  It is giving people opportunity to change their ways when they mess up.  It is turning the other cheek when they wrong us instead of seeking vengeance. 

      Walking humbly before God means that we acknowledge that God is sovereign over us.  It is giving the Lord the credit due Him for all He does in and through us.  It is not exalting ourselves.  It is always seeking to honor and glorify God.  It is understanding that we owe the Lord our very lives, now and forever. 

      It is good for us to do what God requires of us.  It is the only assurance that we have we will make it to heaven.  Doing these things without a relationship with Christ will make us good in the eyes of man, but it will not make us qualified for heaven.  Jesus alone is the way, truth and life.  It is only a living relationship with Christ that will make us good before God. 

     Are you doing what God requires of you?

HEAR YE! HEAR YE!

Micah 2:6  “Don’t say such things,” the people say.  “Don’t prophecy like that.  Such disasters will never come our way!”  NLT

       Like many before Him, Micah was warning people of their impending doom because of their sin.  He was trying to convince them that they needed to return to God before they felt the wrath of God.  God declared that judgment was coming, but the people were not listening.  They were not willing to admit that they were needing to be held accountable for their rebellion against God.  They were in denial and wanted Micah to stop his preaching.

       Things are much the same today as they were in Micah’s day.  God has raised up many voices to declare that judgment is coming.  The warnings are loud and clear, “Repent!  The day of our salvation is now!”  God is love and He is merciful, but He is also holy and He will not let sin run rampant indefinitely.  No one is going to escape their Judgment Day.  No one is going to get away with rejecting God and living in sin.

     There are many voices, inside and outside the church, who are trying to silence God’s modern day prophets.  People don’t want to hear messages of judgment and accountability.  They don’t want to hear of a God who will not embrace them in love just the way they are.  So many are proclaiming the message of God’s love and ignoring His message of holiness.

     The reality is that God has not changed.  He is holy love.  He loves us and desires that all will repent and have a relationship with Him.  But, God cannot have a relationship with an unholy people.  He has shown us clearly the way of life that pleases Him and when we refuse to live it, He will honor our choices but hold us accountable for them. 

      Certain disaster is coming to the earth.  God is going to take the righteous out of the world so that they don’t have to live through the mess that is coming.  God is going to rid the world of sin once and for all.  All who reject Him will end up in hell for all of eternity.  Saying it isn’t so won’t change a thing.  God has declared it’s going to happen regardless of how we may feel about it.

       “HEAR YE!  HEAR YE!” God is going to call people into account.  All sin will be accounted for.  Those who die in their sins will go to hell for it.  All who die in the righteousness of Christ will go to heaven.  It’s that simple.  Judgment Day is coming.

      Are you ready for your Judgment Day?

RUNNING FROM GOD

 

Jonah 1:3 But Jonah got up and went in the opposite direction in order to get away from the LORD. He went down to the seacoast, to the port of Joppa, where he found a ship leaving for Tarshis. He bought a ticket and went on board, hoping that by going away to the west he could escape from the LORD.  NLT

      I am intrigued by Jonah’s fleeing from the Lord. He did not want to go where God wanted him to go. He did not want to do what God wanted him to do. He did not want to agree with God and so decided to run away and hide where God could not find him. I suspect Jonah was not alone. It would be interesting to know how many of us would honestly admit that we too have fled from God. How many of us try to hide from God, hoping that He will not find us and leave us alone?

       This is not about those who don’t know the Lord. Jonah was a prophet, a man who knew God and was called to serve Him. He ran, knowing full well what it was God wanted him to do. God doesn’t always ask us to do what we want to do. He asks us to do what He wants us to do and what He knows we can do.

      Jonah did not like what God had in mind to do. He knew that God was more than likely going to show mercy and love rather than judgment on His enemies, and that didn’t set too well with Jonah. He didn’t want what God wanted. He wanted justice, not mercy.

      Jonah foolishly thought he could run and get away from God. There is nowhere you can go to get away from God. The only thing you can do to avoid God is to completely reject Him as your Savior, to deny Him access to your heart. Otherwise, God will find you wherever you may try to flee. He will not let you off the hook that easy. He will do all He can do to convince you that you need to bend your will to His and obey Him.

       Are you running away from God today, or are you doing His will for you? 

JERUSALEM, OUR REFUGE

Obadiah 17 “But Jerusalem will become a refuge for those who escape; it will be a holy place.  And the people of Israel will come back to reclaim their inheritance.” NLT

        We are promised that there is coming a New Jerusalem, a place where the faithful will dwell eternally with God.  We don’t know exactly where it will be.  It may be at its present location or it may be somewhere else.  God is going to purge the world of its sin and create a new heaven and earth. 

       What we do know is that in the New Jerusalem there will be no sin.  There will be no pain, sorrow, suffering, or death.  There won’t be any need for the sun for the glory of Christ will be our eternal light.  There will be nothing but eternal joy and peace.

       The New Jerusalem will be a holy place, a place of refuge for the redeemed.  We will dwell in a place that the Lord is building for us today.  It will be a place unlike any other place in all creation.  It will be a place where we will worship and serve the Lord with eternal joy.

        In the New Jerusalem, there will be no distinction between the redeemed.  We will all be one in Christ: no Jew or Gentile, no male or female, no rich or poor. 

        Let us live now in anticipation of that grand and glorious day.  Only those who are holy in heart will be there.  Will I see you there?

GOD WILL JUDGE NATIONS

Obadiah 15 “The day is near when I, the LORD, will judge the godless nations!  As you have done to Israel, so it will be done to you.  All your evil deeds will fall back on your own heads.”  NLT

       The more history unfolds, the more attention we need to pay to this warning from the Lord.  Although this warning was addressed to a different people at a different time, I believe it is very relevant to our times.  We read the prophetic Scriptures and we realize that there is indeed coming a day in which all the nations of the earth will be judged according to their godlessness and how they have treated Israel.  It’s not a matter of “if”, it’s a matter of when.

      There is coming a day of justice for all nations.  God is going to come down hard on the world.  He is going to bring the world to her knees.  A day is coming in which every knee will bow before Him and declare that He is Lord, the God of all creation. 

       We cannot change the course of history.  We are moving closer and closer to that day.  Sin is blatant in the public arena.  The sacredness of life is quickly fading away.  People are treating one another cruelly with very little respect or concern.  People are chasing after the world’s offerings and the pleasures of sin.  People are blatantly denying God and that sin even exists.

       However, we may be able to help some.  We need to faithfully and diligent share the Gospel message.  We must pray faithfully and diligently for the harvest field and workers in it.  We must encourage one another and spur one another to greater faithfulness and service.  We must work together instead of majoring on that which divides us.  There are still souls who will be saved.  God is not willing that any of them perish and neither should we be. 

       Time is running out on the world very quickly.  Let us be about the Master’s business while we can.  Today is the day of salvation.  Tomorrow may very well be the Day of Judgment.

A FAMINE OF THE SCRIPTURES

Amos 8:11-12  “The time is surely coming,” says the Sovereign LORD, “when I will send a famine on the land—not a famine of bread or water, but of hearing the words of the LORD.  People will stagger everywhere from sea to sea, searching for the word of the LORD, running here and going there, but they will not find it.” NLT

       The time is coming when there will be a famine on the land for hearing the Word of God.  I believe that we are moving close to a famine right now.  We live in a time where the Word of God is for the most part available to all.  With the technology now in place, one can access God’s Word quickly and easily.  Yet, just because it’s available doesn’t mean it’s being accessed.  People are growing up with very little, if any, knowledge of the Bible.  Wherever you go, you will find people ignorant regarding what the Bible says.

      There are many churches today where the Bible is not used or even welcomed.  As outrageous as it may seem, it is true.  The Bible is considered to be archaic and unreliable.  It comes under great scrutiny and is not taken seriously.  Many church leaders do not have a personal knowledge of, or appreciation for the Word of God.  When the Bible is used, it is used to promote personal agendas.  It is taken apart and out of context.  In many church circles, the Scriptures are no longer taken literally.  There is a real famine in the Church today for the Word of God as God gave it. 

      People are staggering around, groping for meaning and purpose in life.  They may be deeply involved in church life and spiritual activities, but they are starving to death.  They are not finding life worth the living for; they have lost their way and don’t know how to find their way back.  As a result, anything and everything seems to go in the name of Christ.

      We must diligently protect God’s Word in us and in our churches.  We cannot take a lackadaisical attitude about this.  We must preach and teach only the Word of God in our churches and homes.  We must insist on basing our faith on the Word of God instead of our activities.  We must let the Word penetrate deep within our souls and captivate our minds.  We must stand unwaveringly on the truth that the Bible IS the authoritative Word of God.  Don’t starve your soul to death like so many do.  God said what He meant and means what He said; strive to always live it

FAITH 24/7

Amos 8:5  You can’t wait for the Sabbath day to be over and the religious festivals to end so you can get back to cheating the helpless.  You measure out your grain in false measures and weigh it on dishonest scales.” NLT

      How consistent are you in your faith walk?  Far too many who go to church on Sundays don’t show it on Mondays.  There is the mindset in the church that going to church is good enough to get us into heaven, that it doesn’t matter too much what we do during the week as long as we go to church on Sunday. 

      I would much rather see someone who seldom goes to church on Sunday and live righteously than those who go to church on Sunday but live like the devil the rest of the week.  Church is important as a means of strengthening and growing our faith, but it will not get us into heaven.  Only the heart that is made righteous in Christ will enter into heaven.  There is no sin in heaven and when we live in sin, we disqualify ourselves from it.

       Words alone don’t cut it.  A true child of God will live like a child of God all the days of his life.  He will live obediently and faithfully before man and God.  He will strive to live a holy life, shunning sin as much as possible.  A child of God does not make excuses when he does sin.  He admits it when he sins and repents of it.  He strives to honor God in both words and deeds. 

      Regardless of when and where you worship the Lord, if your life doesn’t back up your worship, your worship is in vain.  Living in Christ consumes the soul and affects every area of one’s life all the time.  Always seek to do what is right in God’s eyes and you won’t have any problem making it to heaven when you die.

DO GOOD; RUN FROM EVIL

Amos 5:14  Do what is good and run from evil—that you may live!  The LORD God Almighty will truly be your helper, just as you have claimed he is.  NLT

       It’s not very hard to understand at all.  If we want to live in Christ we must do good and run from evil.  If we do this, then the Lord will help us do it. 

      We cannot do good if we aren’t good.  What makes us good is the shed blood of Christ applied to our hearts.  No one is good in the Biblical sense except for God and no one can be good apart from a relationship with Him.  Just because we do good things doesn’t mean we are good people.  It’s not too hard to be good before man while not being good before God.  We often confuse the two and think that our standing with man makes us in good standing with God.  It doesn’t.  Only Christ can make us good before God.

       If we are good before God we will run from evil.  Now, we can’t avoid evil; it’s the norm for the world in which we live.  But, we can choose to not participate in the evil that surrounds us.  We can choose to run from tempting situations.  We can choose to not be entertained by evil.  We can choose to not get too close to evil and avoid it rubbing off on us.  Godly people have a distaste in their mouths for evil and seek instead the things of God.  They seek to let the Lord build them up instead of letting Satan tear them down.

      The Lord promises to help us when we set our hearts and minds on Him.  He wants to see us become a holy people, a people after His own heart.  He wants to make us heaven ready.  He wants to teach us His ways.  He wants to help us get rid of all the baggage that hinders us.  He wants to help us live in victory and not defeat.  He wants to help us, but He won’t do it unless we let Him have control of our hearts and minds.  

GOD WARNS US

 

Amos 3:7  “But always, first of all, I warn you through my servants the prophets.  I, the Sovereign LORD, have now done this.”  NLT

     God does not act in judgment without first warning us.  God makes it very clear why He judges us.  He has over and over again made known to us the life we need to live before Him.  He demands of us holy living.  He clearly has told us what sin is and how we need to avoid it.  He makes a clear distinction between sin and godly living.  He created us with the ability to choose between good and evil and right from the beginning made it clear what was good and what was evil.

     No one can claim innocence or injustice when it comes to sin.  God gave us His Word to clearly show us the way to holy living.  He has told us about coming judgment on the world.  Although most ignore God’s warnings and warning signs, it is going to happen just as He proclaimed it would.  Knowing that God does take sin seriously and judges it ought to cause us to be careful how we live.  All sin will be exposed by His holiness and judged on Judgment Day.

       In order to know what God says about sin and judgment, we must dig deep into God’s Word.  A consistent reading of the Word exposes sin that is around us and in us.  We who have the Word at our disposal will be held more accountable for our knowledge of our sin for all we have to do is to open it up and read it.  A closed Bible does the soul no good.  We need to read what sin is under the law and under grace.  We need to read about the consequences of sin.  We need to read about how God has dealt with sin in the past, how He deals with it now, and how He will deal with it in the future.

      You are warned.  God judges sin and will have no mercy on those who insist on living in it.

RETURN TO GOD NOW

Joel 2:12-13  That is why the LORD says, “Turn to me now, while there is time!  Give me your hearts.  Come with fasting, weeping, and mourning.  Don’t tear your clothing in your grief; instead, tear your hearts” Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and merciful.  He is not easily angered.  He is filled with kindness and is eager not to punish you.  NLT

       If you have turned away from the Lord, hear what He is saying to you today.  Turn to Him while there is still time!  You don’t know what is ahead of you.  You may not even finish reading this today.  Right now is the time to turn to Him and give Him your heart.  Don’t let pride get in your way.  Humble yourself before God and seek His face.  Admit your sins, confess them before Him, and ask Him to forgive you right now while you can.

     The Lord is gracious and merciful; He will not turn you away.  He will not reject you just because you have rejected Him.  He is gracious and merciful and not easily angered.  He has open arms to all who would turn to Him and repent.  He longs to have fellowship with you.  He longs to pour out His love and blessings on you.  The only one who can stop Him from doing it is you. 

      The Lord is full of kindness and is eager to not punish you.  He takes no delight in punishing anyone for sin, but He must if they don’t repent.  God is holy and will never let sin go.  He patiently waits for the soul to return to Him, but there always comes a point in which His patience runs out.  He knows the soul and will continue to try to woo us back to Him while we are still able to return.  Don’t let sin harden your heart to the point where God can no longer penetrate it.  Return to Him now while you can. 

       If you have not forsaken the Lord but find yourself not as close to Him as you once were, now is the time to turn back to the Lord before you drift further away.  Today is the day of salvation.  You may never have another chance to get back right with God.  Do it now while you can.  If all is well with your soul, praise the Lord for it and pray for those who need to return to Him.

TRUE REPENTANCE

Joel 2:12-13 That is why the LORD says, “Turn to me now, while there is time! Give me your hearts. Come with fasting, weeping, and mourning. Don’t tear your clothing in your grief; instead, tear your hearts.  Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and merciful. He is not easily angered. He is filled with kindness and is eager not to punish you.”   NLT

      True repentance comes from the inside out and not the outside in. We can do nothing to change our heart and make it right before God. No religious exercise or deed will ever make you right with God. No strict adherence to any laws or regulations will make you right with God. God wants your heart. He wants your will, your love, your commitment to obedience and service. God wants you to sincerely want Him to change the way you think and feel about sin, yourself, and Him. He wants you to give Him the motives why you do, think, and say what you do. God wants you to let Him control what goes in and out of your heart.

     When we approach God in this way, we then find true repentance. He is merciful and gracious and will not turn anyone away who sincerely seeks Him. The issue we must deal with today is, “Have I sincerely given the Lord my heart, my life? Do I know that He has changed me from the inside out, or am I still trying to change from the outside in?”

THE PATHS OF THE LORD

Hosea 14:9  Let those who are wise understand these things.  Let those who are discerning listen carefully.  The paths of the LORD are true and right, and righteous people live by walking in them.  But sinners stumble and fall along the way.  NLT

     Wise are those who know the paths of the Lord and walk on them.  Wise are those who know the ways of the Lord are always true and right and when we follow them we will make it to heaven.  The Lord has never led one soul astray and, He never will.

      The paths of the Lord are whatever it is that leads us to God.  God makes himself known to us clearly and in a wide variety of ways.  When we follow the path that leads to God, we will find Him.  God makes himself abundantly clear in the Scriptures.  You cannot read the Scriptures without encountering God.  When we pray with sincere hearts seeking God, we find Him.  God hears the prayers of those who sincerely seek Him and answers them.  God is found in the fellowship of the church.  You may have to look hard in some churches in order to find Him, but in most churches, He is there.  God is found in the lives of those committed to Him.  Getting to know godly people helps us to find Him.  God is found in creation; all we have to do is to look honestly and humbly at creation and we can only conclude that God is.  God is found in music, books, movies and we will find Him if we are sincerely looking for Him.

      Righteous are those who are sincerely seeking God.  They want to see God.  They are observant in life and attribute to God the things that flow from God.  They pursue those things that lead them to God.  They strive to avoid those things where God cannot be found.  The passion of the righteous is being in the presence of God. 

       Righteous are those who put their faith in Christ, who alone makes us righteous.  They come to Christ with their sins, confess them, and ask Him for His forgiveness.  They then strive to live like they are forgiven.

       Sinners stumble over the paths that lead to God.  They are so blinded by sin that they have a very hard time seeing the paths that lead to God, let alone follow them.  The desire of the sinner’s heart is not for God so they don’t pursue Him.  They stumble and fall over the witness of God all around them.  Sinners who are content in their sin will not find God. 

      “Lord, help us to understand that we must always walk only on the paths that lead us to you and to not be content with the life of sin we are prone to drift into.  In Jesus’ name.  Amen.”

PLANT, PLOW, PRODUCE

Hosea 10:12  Plant the good seeds of righteousness and you will harvest a crop of my love.  Plow up the hard ground of your hearts, for now is the time to seek the LORD, that he may come and shower righteousness on you.  NLT

     When you live in righteousness you will naturally be a loving person.  You cannot be right with God and not inherit His love nature.  No matter how well you may be able to live righteously by man’s standards, if you are not loving, you are not living righteously by God’s standards.

      Hosea spoke to a people who based their righteousness on how well they were able to live by God’s law.  God made it very clear what they must do in order to be right with Him.  What ended up happening was that when they lived by the law they failed to love one another and legalism without love creates a hard heart.  Hosea’s admonition was for them to plow up the hardness of their hearts.  Obedience to God must be done for the right reason.  What we do must flow from hearts of love, not duty.

       If you are not motivated by love for the Lord in what you do, now is the time to do something about it.  Continuing on without love makes the heart hard towards God.  No matter how much good you are doing, if love is not behind it, you do it in vain.  God knows your heart and whether or not your motivation in doing what is right is love and He will hold you accountable for your motivation.  If you want to be sure your heart is right with God, take a bath in His love.  He will shower you in His righteousness and all will be well with your soul.

       Loving God overshadows everything we do.  It affects not only our standing with God, it affects our relationships with others.  We cannot love God without loving people.  We cannot live righteously with uncaring souls. 

      Now is the time to examine your soul.  Now is the time to seek the Lord.  Now is the time to make sure that loving God is the driving force in your life.  Now is the time to live righteously before God.  Tomorrow may never come and if you don’t do it now, it may be too late.

DON'T DOUBT GOD'S LOVE

Dan. 9:4  I prayed to the LORD my God and confessed, “ O Lord, you are a great and awesome God!  You always fulfill your promises of unfailing love to those who love you and keep your commands.”  NLT

      Do you really believe it?  Do you believe that God always fulfills His promises of unfailing love to those who love Him and obey Him?  Think about how you think about God when circumstances overwhelm you and He seems to not care.  Be honest.  Do you consider God loving you when things are going bad for you?  Don’t you question the love of God for you when nothing seems to change for the better?  After all, if God really loves, He would make sure everything went well for us, wouldn’t He?

      We doubt God’s love because we can’t see the forest because of the trees.  All we can see is the moment we are in, not the broader picture of our lives.  We don’t see how the moment can be good for us in any way.  We don’t see how God is going to use us the rest of our life journey and how our present circumstances are a part of our preparation. 

      We don’t see the good in the bad because we fail to remember what God says about himself.  He is holy love and is incapable of acting in a non-loving way.  Everything God does, or allows to happen in our lives, flows from love.  He is incapable of doing anything wrong.  We may not understand it at all, but it is true.  In order to deal with life we must accept as absolute truth everything God says.  All of God’s promises come to pass but, there is a condition if we are going to personally experience them.

       We must love the Lord and obey Him.  When we love the Lord we trust Him.  We rest in the knowledge that what we are going through is noticed by God and is being used by Him for our good.  We do not speak negatively of Him; instead we acknowledge Him, thank Him, and praise Him regardless of what we are experiencing.  We continue to faithfully obey Him regardless of how we feel.  God never fails us, but we do fail Him. God will see you through whatever you are going through if you love Him and obey Him.

FAITHFULLY PRAY

Dan. 6:10  But when Daniel learned that the law had been signed, he went home and knelt down as usual in his upstairs room, with its windows open toward Jerusalem.  He prayed three times a day, just as he had always done, giving thanks to God. NLT

      Daniel did not let his circumstances dictate his faith.  He knew that things weren’t going to be easy for him if he were to continue being bold about his faith, but that did not matter to him.  He unashamedly did what he always did, he prayed openly and he didn’t care what others thought about it.  His allegiance was to God, he needed time alone with God, and he made sure that he got that time. 

      When he prayed, Daniel often gave thanks.  He understood that he was who he was because of God’s favor on him.  He appreciated the life he lived and made sure that God knew of his appreciation.  He was not concerned what others thought; he was determined to acknowledge God’s hand on his life, both past and present.  We can learn much from Daniel’s heart.

       I wonder how bold we are about acknowledging God’s hand on our lives and unashamedly giving Him thanks.  So many of us do not take the time to offer the Lord our thanks for His blessings of life.  I see so many professing Christians who do not pause to give thanks in public before a meal.  I hear so many of us who take far more credit than we deserve for the blessings of our lives.  I hear so many prayers that are geared to what we want from God rather than thanks for what we have received.  A lack of gratitude for God’s blessings is a sin. 

      God deserves our gratitude.  We don’t deserve to be children of God.  We don’t deserve any of the blessings He bestows on us.  It is shameful the way that we often act around those who do not share our faith.  We should never hide our faith.  We should not care what others may think.  It is far more important what God thinks than it is man.  Dare to be a Daniel.  Let others see your faith at work in you and hear your words of gratitude unto the Lord.

       Don’t let your circumstances dictate whether you pray or not.  Instead, let the natural flow of your love for the Lord and gratitude for His role in your life lead you to pray.  Don’t stifle the natural response of the soul to worship God regardless of the circumstances you are in. 

FINDING NO FAULT

Dan. 6:4  The other administrators and princes began searching for some fault in the way Daniel was handling his affairs, but they couldn’t find anything to criticize.  He was faithful and honest and always responsible.  NLT

       It should be our goal to be like Daniel.  Daniel was so righteous that others could find nothing in him to criticize.  He was faithful and honest and always responsible.  Being that kind of a person is not an easy task.  First of all, it requires an unshakable devotion to God.  Daniel was not caught up in the world, nor did he have worldly aspirations.  He just wanted to live a life that was pleasing to God. 

       Faithfulness is a great quality to find in people.  Faithful people are trustworthy.  You can always count on them to be who they really are.  They can be counted on to act within their character.  There are no surprises when you are dealing with faithful people; what you see is what you get.  When a person is right with God, it is a pleasure to be around them.  When a person is not right with God, you can expect from them sinful acts, attitudes, and talk.

       One of the things that set Daniel apart from others was his honesty.  He could always be counted on to treat others fairly.  If he was wrong, he did not try to hide it.  He admitted it when he messed up and took full responsibility for his actions.  He was not too proud to admit his shortcomings to himself or others.  He was a good man; no one could find fault with him.

       Do you dare to be a Daniel?  It should be our goal to live such lives of integrity that no one can find fault with us.  Now, no one can be perfect.  No one can be so good that others will never find fault with us.  But, we can strive to be the best Christlike person we can be.  When we are living in Christ, others should be able to count on us to do what is right, they should always be able to say that we are honest in our dealings, and they should be able to know that we take responsibility for our behavior and attitudes. 

FAILED THE TEST

Dan. 5:27  Tekel means “weighed”---you have been weighed on the balances and have failed the test.  NLT

       This verse first spoke to me very early in my Christian walk.  The Lord spoke to me about how I was doing in my faith walk.  I had to take a serious look at myself and examine whether or not I was living a life that pleased the Lord or was I failing the test?  I still look inward when I read this verse.  I want to live a life that pleases the Lord.  I want Him to look down upon me with a smile on His face and proclaim me to be His child.  I don’t want to ever be found wanting and in danger of failing the test of God’s examination.  But, how can we ever be sure that we are not failing the test?

      We can live in confidence that we are pleasing the Lord.  It, of course, all begins at Calvary.  We must turn to Christ for the forgiveness of our sins.  We have no chance whatsoever with God unless we do.  We then must be living submissively and obediently to Him.  We accomplish this by taking His Word seriously and spending daily time in it to study it and meditate on it.  We need daily time fellowshipping with God in prayer.  We then need to take our faith with us wherever we go in the world.  We must not ever let ourselves be ashamed of our faith.  We must let our faith shine through us so that others will know we are Christ’s by our love and righteous living.

       I believe there should be a healthy fear of how we stand before God.  Sin is an abomination to God and we should be concerned about whether or not we are harboring it in our hearts.  Can we excuse our sins because we live in grace and not under the law?  Will God shrug His shoulders and overlook sin because we proclaim Jesus as our Savior?  If He could, then He would not be the holy God we profess Him to be.  We should always strive to stay sin free so that we would not be weighed in the balances of God’s holiness and fail the test.

      Are you so transparent that others can readily see Christ in you?  Are you doing your best to live a life that is consistent with your profession of faith?  Are you striving to be the holy person God created you to be in Christ?  If you are, then you are passing the test.  God is well-pleased with you.  Keep it up!  Run the race with your eyes glued on Christ.  Fight the good fight of faith and never slack off.  Great is your reward in heaven, both now and eternally.

IN THE FIRE!

Dan. 3:25  “Look!” Nebuchadnezzar shouted.  “I see four men, unbound, walking around in the fire.  They aren’t even hurt by the flames!  And the fourth looks like a divine being!” NLT

       I can only imagine what Nebuchadnezzar must have thought when he saw four people walking around in a fire that he had made seven times hotter than normal.  A lot of fearful things must have gripped him.  It just did not happen!  People do not walk around in the middle of any kind of fire without being consumed by it.  Period.  Yet, there they were!  Not only did he see the Hebrews he had thrown into the fire walking around, there was an extra person with them!  Where in the world did He come from?  How is it even possible?  He had to just appear because no one lives in a fiery furnace!  He saw these men walking around unbound, and he had made sure that they were tightly bound before they were cast into the furnace. 

      Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were seemingly just out for a stroll in the flames.  They weren’t being affected by the fire whatsoever!  They apparently were deep in conversation with the other man, oblivious to what was going on around them.  It was a strange sight indeed.  I know that I would have been scared of what I was seeing and more than curious as to how it could be and what it meant.  The king didn’t know it, but God was with them in the furnace.

       Isn’t it comforting to know that we serve a God who knows when we stand up for Him regardless of what others may think or do?  We serve one who cares about the situation we are in and is able to help us through it.  He never leaves us hanging.  He is always with us as we go through our difficult circumstances of life.  He doesn’t promise to change what we are going through, but He does promise to go with us through it. 

       The wonderful thing about it is that when we walk with the Lord through our difficult circumstances of life, things change for us.  Our faith grows stronger, our confidence in God’s love for us grows stronger, our awareness of His ability to help us grows, our ability to let go of our own power lessens, and our gratitude for the God we serve grows.  Adversity is a good thing when you go through it with the Lord at your side. 

GOD WILL SAVE US

Dan. 3:16-18  Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego replied, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you.  If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God whom we serve is able to save us.  He will rescue us from your power.  Your Majesty can be sure that we will never serve your gods or worship the gold statue you have set up.”  NLT

       Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego knew God well enough to know that for them there was no other God.  They would not bend to the pressure of the king to bow down and worship another god, even if it were to cost them their lives.  They knew what God was capable of.  Would God deliver them?  They didn’t know, but they were willing to trust Him with their lives.  They had gotten to know the Lord well enough to know that they could not put their allegiance anywhere but in Him.  They knew Him well enough to know that He was worth dying for.

       It is imperative that we too get to know the Lord well enough to trust Him with our lives.  We live in a world that has many different understandings of God.  People try to force their understanding on others.  People chide those who stand strong on Biblical principles.  We need to work hard at developing a relationship with God that will keep us anchored in Him regardless of the circumstances we are in.

      When we really know and love the Lord, we do not need to defend ourselves, but we do it don’t we?  We tend to be defensive when things don’t go our way or others don’t see things as we do.  We tend to feel like we have to win in this life. 

      We need to discover that it’s not about us; it’s about the Lord.  We don’t need to fear what others may be able to do or what they think.  We put ourselves in the Lord’s hands and accept whatever may happen.  There is no power on earth that can defeat a soul whose God is the Lord.  Jesus is the way and there is no other way.

     Work hard on your salvation so that you will be able to stand up strong in the faith regardless of whatever circumstance you may find yourself in.  The stronger your faith is, the less fear will grip your soul.  The Lord will be with you to help you always when you are totally committed to Him, even in the face of certain death. 

MAKE UP YOUR MIND

Dan. 1:8 But Daniel made up his mind not to defile himself by eating the food and wine given to them by the king. He asked the chief official for permission to eat other things instead.  NLT

      Daniel did not wait until the challenge was put before him to make up his mind what he was going to do.  He had predetermined that he would not defile himself by eating the food and drinking the wine of the king.  He had his mind and heart made up that he was going to do what was right before God no matter the circumstances.

      We can spare ourselves a lot of indecision and perhaps wrong decisions by determining in our hearts beforehand that we will do only what we know is right in God’s eyes.  It is a good thing to make a commitment to ourselves that we will not compromise our faith in God.  When we have an attitude of total allegiance to God it keeps us out of a lot of the sin we so easily fall into.

      We can also set an example for others to follow by how we stay true to our faith in challenging times.  Circumstances should never dictate our response.  When others see us do what is godly in all circumstances, they will know that they too can do it. 

       I ask you today, “Have you made up your mind not to defile yourself?”  Are you watching carefully over your soul?  Are you avoiding those situations that could cause you to defile yourself?  Are you determined in your heart that you are going to do only those things which are good for your soul?  If you can’t honestly say that you are doing these things, you need to make a covenant with the Lord today about them and seek His help so you can.

THERE IS HOPE!

Ezek. 37:4-6 Then he said to me, “Speak to these bones and say, ‘Dry bones, listen to the word of the LORD! This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Look! I am going to breathe into you and make you live again! I will put flesh and muscles on you and cover you with skin. I will put breath into you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD.’ ”  NLT

       The message I get from these verses is a message of hope.  We may be dead and lost in sin, but the Lord can breathe into us the breath of life.  All hope of change may be gone, but the Lord can instantly change that.  The Lord is able to give eternal life to anyone who turns to Him for the forgiveness of sin.  No one is beyond the reach of saving grace. 

      Also, there are some of us whose love for the Lord has grown cold.  We may not be totally dead yet, but it seems that way.  We walk around like spiritual zombies.  The zeal for the Lord and caring attitude for others has grown cold.  The desire to read the Bible and pray is almost gone.  There is no longer joy and peace in the soul.  The Lord can breathe into us the breath of life that we might live again.  He can help us to know once again that He is Lord of life.  He can restore us to usefulness in His service.

      The Lord is able to revive the soul of man.  He is able to make the vilest of sinners clean.  He is able to renew the spark in the coldest of hearts.  He longs to breathe into the soul a passion for Him.  He longs for all people to know that He is indeed Lord. 

      Do you know in your heart today that Jesus is Lord?  Are you certain that He is your Lord?  Don’t let sin rob you of the joys of salvation.  Repent and turn to the Lord that you may indeed know that He is your Savior and Lord.