Remember Your God

 "Is this not the word that we told you in Egypt, saying,
let us alone that we may serve the Egyptians? 
For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians that that we should die in the wilderness."
Exodus 14:12

I often wonder how the Children of Israel could have had such little faith.  Sure, they were in a tough spot, the Red Sea was in front of them and Pharaoh and his army were pressing down upon them from behind.  They had no escape in any direction and they knew that the Egyptians would show no mercy, but how could they have forgotten all that God had done for them so quickly?  The Lord had delivered Israel from the slavery of Egypt by His great power through the plagues, and had even gone before them in a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night.  They were in this dangerous circumstance because they had been following the Lord!  Yet, they were fearful and even rebellious.

Usually when I begin to question the faith of the Israelites, the Lord will open my eyes to see myself in their actions.  As I wonder at their lack of faith, I'm reminded of my own lack of faith.  There have been many times when the Lord has miraculously answered prayers, and I have confessed that I would never doubt Him again only to doubt Him again.  If we are honest with ourselves I believe we can all identify with the weakness we see in the children of Israel.

If you find yourself in a season of doubt or a place where there seems to be no escape, it's time to remember your God.  The Lord knows where you are and the troubles you face, He has never failed you, and He never will fail you.  Replace panic with prayer and fear with trust.  If you are in a Red Sea moment, heed Moses command to Israel, "Do not be afraid.  Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord..."

Stepping Out

 "And it shall come to pass, as soon as the soles of the feet of the priests who bear the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of the Jordan, that the waters of the Jordan shall be cut off, the waters that come down from upstream, and they shall stand as a heap."
Joshua 3:13

Faith is something that requires our action. To truly believe by faith, means you act upon that belief.  As Christians we often use the term "step out in faith".  Notice the priests caring the ark before Israel literally had to "step out in faith" into the Jordan before the Lord stopped the flow of the river.  The priests stepping into the water proved they had true faith.  The Apostle Peter was called by the Lord to walk to Him on the sea, and Peter literally had to "step out in faith" upon the water for that miracle to occur.  Peter stepped out of the boat, showing he had faith in the word of Jesus.

We are called to be men and women of faith.  We are to live by faith, meaning we truly put our trust in the Lord and His promises.  Far too many give mental assent to the truths of God but those truths don't impact the way they live.  The days we are living in demand a real vital active faith.  May we be a church that will always "step out in faith"!
 

Forgiven

 "He will again have compassion on us, and will subdue our iniquities.  You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea."  Micah 7:19


This is for anyone having a hard time believing that God will forgive your sins.  Notice the two things He does to our sins or our iniquities.  First we are told He subdues them.  To subdue means literally to trample down!  Think about it, God's desire is to go after the sin that brings ruin to your life and crush it, to grind it down so it has no affect upon you.

Next we are told God will take our sins and cast them into the deep parts of the sea.  He doesn't keep your sins around to remind you how bad you are or how unworthy you are.  God removes them where they are unseen and not remembered.

The assurance of God's mercy is found in the cross of Jesus Christ.  In Christ our sins are crushed and our iniquities are cast away.  Are you bound by sins past or present?  Find freedom and forgiveness in Jesus who died for you.
 

Guide With The Eye

 
Psalm 32:8 "I will guide you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye."

I was on a police chaplain ride-along when we got a call for a possible break-in at a home.  When we arrived at the home, we went around to the backyard and found a door ajar.  We had been joined by another officer and when they saw the open door, both men pulled their weapons.  My adrenaline started pumping immediately and I focused on the two officers communicating without speaking a word.  There were nods, and hand signals, and I think I even saw a sort of wink.

The story doesn't have an adventurous conclusion, the men entered the house and discovered there had been no break-in, it was just a door that was left open.  I was fascinated by the way the two policemen were able to work together so well and communicate in a tense situation without words.  Clearly they knew and trusted each other, and had worked together often.

An important part of my walk with the Lord is my communication with Him.  I love it that He tells me that He would guide me with His eye.  I'd prefer He guide me with His eye, because the alternative in Psalm 32 is being dragged about like a horse or donkey!  To have the Lord guide with His eye requires that I know Him, that I trust Him, and its important that I'm looking at Him!  I'm longing for the day when the Lord doesn't have a difficult time getting through to me, He won't have to shout or flick my ear, all it will take is a nod or a wink.

Chin Up

 
 "For they all were trying to make us afraid, saying, 'Their hands will be weakened in the work, and it will not be done.'  Now therefore, O God, strengthen my hands."  Nehemiah 6:9

Nehemiah's enemies were relentless in trying to halt the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem.  A main tactic used was to bring fear upon the people so as to weaken their resolve and overwhelm them.  The enemy mocked, threatened, lied, and even hired some false prophets, all with the hope of stirring up fear to stop the work.  Notice the great example of Nehemiah, he wasn't distracted or afraid, he just called out to the Lord and went back to work!

The enemy that withstood Nehemiah is the same enemy who would seek to halt God's working in our lives.  He would seek to bring fear and discouragement to weaken our resolve in pursuing the Lord's best.  If fear is creeping in, turn your thoughts and heart heavenward to our victorious King, call out to the Lord, and get back to work. 

Alan Redpath had a saying that I love using to muster courage in myself and others.  To hearten one in the midst of a battle, Redpath would say, "Chin up, knees down."  Don't be afraid, take a powerful stance for battle, knees on the ground in prayer, and eyes fixed on the Lord!
 

Complete Trust

And they gave the children of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying "The land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature."  Numbers 13:32

Moses had sent out twelve men to spy out the promised land.  The men had returned with an abundance of fruit from the land, but gave the people a bad report.  With fear they described the people who inhabited the land.  Their conclusion was that if the people went into the land they would be devoured.

It would seem very odd that God would through mighty wonders deliver His people from Egypt, and then lead them into the land he had promised them, only to have them swallowed up.  Yet, that is what the spies reported to the people, and the people believed them.  Because the Children of Israel did not trust the Lord they were not able to enter into His promises.

I wonder how many times we mirror Israel's lack of faith.  There is that little nagging fear in most of us that keeps us from trusting God completely.  We shy away from total trust, as if the God who died for us would lead us to places that would devour us.  God's promises are sure, He loves us and we are under His grace, so let's trust Him!
  

Are You Praying?

"Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood and the stones and the dust, and it licked up the water that was in the trench."
I Kings 18:38

The four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal had called out to their god for at least six hours.  They hollered and danced and cut themselves but after all that time and ruckus, we are told "there was no voice; no one answered, no one paid attention.
After the prophets of Baal had finished, Elijah stood and said a very short prayer that takes up only two verses of the Bible, and at the end of his prayer, God heard and answered by consuming the sacrifice with fire from heaven.  Out of curiosity I timed myself reading the short prayer of Elijah, and it took me twenty one seconds.  Think about it, the pagan prophets prayed six hours and nothing happened, Elijah prayed twenty one seconds and the power of God reigned down.

There are some good lessons from this.  The first obvious lesson is you can pray all day to nothing and nothing will happen.  Second, the length of the prayer isn't as important as faith in the One you are praying to.  God hears our prayers and answers our prayers.  Are you praying?