Don't Stand Still: Make the journey and face the enemies

God didn’t deliver us so we could stand still.

That was my take away from a verse I meditated on this week as I posted it on Grow Barefoot social media (Facebook, Twitter, Google+). The verse was Psalm 56:13.

A lot of us are content standing still. Hey, at least we aren’t just sitting in a pew – we’re standing! We serve a little in our churches, we pray occasionally, maybe open a Bible sometimes on a day other than Sunday, and pretty much try to live a good life. Sometimes we go a little crazy and put a Christian calendar on our desk at work or a Christian bumper sticker on the back of our car. They fit in real nice between the chrome fish and the stick figures of our family members.

It’s all good. We did those things five years ago, and if God doesn’t return, we’ll be doing them five years from now. And ten years. And twenty years. We’ll keep doing them and never stop doing them because we’re standing still.

So, in the midst of all our standing around, in comes a verse like Psalm 56:13, “For You delivered me from death, even my feet from stumbling, to walk before God in the light of life.” It invades our comfy little standing-around gathering and reminds us all what God did for us. It even has the nerve to go a step further and point out an appropriate response on our part.

Considering Psalm 56

Psalm 56:13 is the conclusion of a brief Psalm written by David when he was in dire circumstances. We have to consider the whole thing to fully understand David’s conclusive call to action.

Introduce the Problem
David is in the midst of his enemies; the Philistines have taken him captive. He knows his life is in danger. Fear overwhelms him despite God’s promise of a future kingship in Israel. The Philistines gasp and pant for the opportunity to crush him. They can almost taste his destruction as they know his defeat will bring them victory against the Israelite army. In their arrogance, they actually think they can stop God’s plan (Psalm 56:1-2).

The Response to Fear
David’s afraid – very afraid. He didn’t allow fear to paralyze him, however. He didn’t let it control his thoughts, actions, or emotions. As waves of fear came over him, he purposely chose to place his trust in God. That’s not a normal human response; David must have had enough life experience by this point to discipline his response to fear. He knew to trust, not panic or doubt God’s promise. After all, he had the very Word of God – a promise given through the prophet Samuel – that God had a future for David. In response, he could quiet his fears, assess the situation, and proclaim to his captors, “What can man do to me?” (Psalm 56:3-4).

The Six Attacks of the Enemy
The Philistines didn’t come at David in only one way. They attacked him relentlessly from six different angles. They tortured him with words as they twisted and distorted the truth to which he clung. They schemed and connived every sort of evil against him. His enemies gathered together under a common cause of stirring up strife in David’s life. They hid themselves away in the deceptive shadows. They watched him from those shadows. As they schemed together, hidden and watching, they panted for a chance to crush and destroy him (Psalm 56:5-6).

God’s Response to David and his Enemies
The stage has been set, David’s attention has been focused in the right direction, and the enemies are scheming their evil plan. With that, we reach the climax of the Psalm. “Will they escape in spite of such sin?” David’s trust in the surety of the Word of God empowers him to prophesy his enemies’ demise – God will bring them down. Their outcome is certain.

David’s outcome is different, though. The same Word that promises the destruction of the enemies of God’s chosen people promises a future for those He has chosen. For them, God has a record of our walk… our journey… our wanderings. He has our tears preserved in a bottle. Our whole walk, including every tear, every moment of fear, every rejection, and every attack by the enemy, is recorded before God’s throne (Psalm 56:7-8).

The Outcome
David’s enemies imprisoned him; his situation looked bleak. Yet, he knew God’s Word and therefore he knew the outcome that awaited. He didn’t cower in fear. He didn’t stand still. He rose up against his enemies. He called out to them knowing they would retreat because he also knew that God was for him. He didn’t need to know the details. He only said, “This I know: God is for me” and that was enough.

Not just any God either. When David entered his dire situation and fear threatened to envelop him, he relied on the Word of God. He trusted the Word and even reached a point of praise in his prison. By the end, though, he had grown. He found victory from the threats and evil intents of the Philistines. He experienced the comfort and compassion of a God who keeps each of our tears in a bottle. He put God to the test and found Him faithful. The experience of his journey led him to add a new line to his song of praise. He not only sang “In Elohiym, whose word I praise” but now the victory of his test leads him to sing, “In YHWH, whose word I praise.” Yahweh, Jehovah, the one and only true God was the source of David’s victory and assurance for the future. With even more confidence and power, I believe he loudly dared any who might rise against him, “What can man do to me?” (Psalm 9-11).

Our Response
Here we are – almost to the verse that began this whole grand saga. God provides epic defeat of the enemy. He not only freed David from captors who lusted for his death; He delivers us from an even worse torment imprisoned in Satan’s lair. He offers us a walk of victory where our feet won’t even stumble. All that He asks is that we take that walk – make that journey. Rise up against those enemies and boldly declare, “God is for me… What can man do to me?”

We’ll never make that walk if we keep standing still.

What might happen if we start walking? We'll become healthier, stronger, and we'll start moving forward. Click here to read more.

Martyr's Blood: Finding the nerve to speak out

I’m in a mood.

You’ve been warned.

Someone hit a nerve and I’m going to have to go off on it a little bit.

First, though, let me tell you about my day yesterday. I said good-bye to my husband and teenagers as they left in the morning. I started the day with my two youngest – breakfast, dressed, school lessons. We talked about converting improper fractions into mixed numbers, keeping a steady tempo on the piano while practicing scales, and Marconi’s invention of the radio over a hundred years ago.

Later in the day I sat down to write this week’s section in our current study through the book of Hebrews. Oddly enough, it’s a section on hope. Ironic, but you’ll understand that more in a little bit. Also ironic, it’s an article most will never read for a myriad of reasons.

And oh yeah, I watched men saw the heads off other men. Yes, I watched it – only a few seconds but it was enough. Here’s the link; it’s a short clip in the midst of a Glenn Beck report. Heed the graphic warning he gives but watch it if you can.

It was a surreal moment as my kids played happily in the background, trees budded and flowers bloomed outside, and I sat in my comfortable chair with a cup of coffee. My pond outside my window rippled in the breeze while the ocean waves in the video washed the blood out to sea.

Shift Gears

The Grow Barefoot team has been praying about upcoming service projects. Our vision is to serve missionaries so they may better serve their people groups. However, that’s a broad vision; knowing how to carry it out is more complex. We’ve also always had a desire to motivate the American church to, um, well, get out of their pews and do something. Although for some, maybe it’s more accurate to say get yourself out of bed and into a pew. Sorry if that sounds harsh. I’ve learned to control my words most of the time but it doesn’t look like that’s going to happen today.

A GB team member sent me a follow-up link today. It was Matt Walsh’s article, “Here’s What You Can Do about the Persecution of Christians: Stop Being a Lazy Coward.” As always, Matt gets it and he’s not afraid to call it like it is. Read his article; it’s worth it. This was the scraping away of my last layer of protection to expose my raw nerve.

Matt gives three practical suggestions for how we can help the persecuted – pray, give, and get off your lazy backside and do something.

Pray
Matt writes, “We forget that prayer isn’t some kumbaya exercise in sending good vibes.”

It took a months-long study on prayer for me to finally start figuring this out. It took the discipline of starting each day alone on my knees for as long as it takes to get the job done, even knowing that sometimes tears will be involved. Sometimes yelling. Sometimes silence. Life-long church attendance didn’t teach me nor did my years in Christian school. Maybe someday I’ll get that study posted on here or available in a book but I remember three key points from it.

• We need to pray all the time.
• We need to pray for everyone.
• We need to pray for everything.

We thank God for the day and the food in front of us but have we thanked Him for the testimony of those men whose blood still mingles in the Mediterranean Sea?

We pray for the sick and those in the hospital but have we prayed for the souls of those separated from God who risk an eternity in hell?

We pray so we find comfort from the stresses of life but have we realized our stresses would be someone else’s abundance of blessing?

Can we get out of bed a few minutes earlier to kneel in His presence? Can we stay up a little longer at night? Can we humble ourselves before Him rather than try to throw out a few words after our head hits the fluffy pillow and before the peaceful breathing of sleep falls upon us?

Read more on prayer:
Dear Lord: A prayer for today
Prayer Shouldn’t add Stress!
Life Sucks: What are we going to do about it?
The Hand of God

Give
To quote Matt again, “We can also lend material support to organizations that are out there trying to help these people.”

Someone accused me of wanting to be Rambo after last week's article because I asked myself, “What would I have done if I had lived in Nazi Germany?” I laughed at the accusation. I was wondering if I would have been willing to open my home to protect the persecuted. Would I have helped move people to safe locations? I still don’t know the answer but I do know Rambo-type actions weren’t ones I considered. Likewise, Grow Barefoot doesn’t feel a call to enter Libya or Syria with guns blazing. That’s nowhere close to how we operate.

We do hope to partner with some groups on the ground if we can, though. This is a public forum so that’s all I’m going to say about that.

Do Something
This is where Matt hit me in the heart as he proclaimed the message I’ve been saying for years. “We can honor their courage and sacrifice by not being such lazy, selfish, apathetic cowards.”

Our road turns onto a major highway. Monday through Friday mornings, it’s a hard turn to make as traffic backs up with many people headed to work. It’s a hard turn on Friday evenings and Sunday evenings as lake traffic backs up the other direction. However, come Sunday morning as we head to church, we make the turn out onto the highway without a moment’s hesitation. I can look several miles in both directions; not a single car will be in sight. Sometimes I comment to my husband, "I wonder how many of us would make it to church if we had to walk ten miles to get there" or some other snarky observation.

I remember rural Haiti where people walked miles to go to church in a hot, crowded room lit only by a single bulb hanging from the ceiling. I remember the songs the people sang loud and powerful despite the fact they were completely off tune.

We gripe because the service starts too early, the thermostat is set a little high, and the praise team didn’t play our favorite song. And by the way, why is 9:00 or 10:00 too early on a Sunday but we can make it to work other mornings by 8:00 or even earlier?

My husband remembers northern Africa where a local man travels to twenty different areas every week so others can listen to the Word of God on his player. He does so despite high fuel prices but even more despite the risk of persecution. He’s already been kicked out of his tribe.

And we gripe because we moved closer to our job and church is too far away now. We complain because the pastor went a few minutes too long or talked about the meaning of too many Greek words.

I remember the countless stories we've heard through the years from missionary friends around the world. Everyone had stories of those who traveled far to hear the Word or find Christian friendship, those who labored endlessly to copy God's Word by hand so they could keep a copy, or those who lost all they had for the chance to know Jesus.

The Irony of Hope
Do you remember the beginning of this rant when I mentioned I was working on a Bible study when that video came across my desk? A Bible study many will never read?

Why do very few care to study His Word? “His divine power has given us everything required for life and godliness through the knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness” (2 Peter 1:3). God’s given us everything we need if we know Him. How do we know Him? Through His Word! Yet it’s too hard, or we’re too busy, or it doesn’t matter, or it’s boring.

And yet, I found myself writing about a message of hope found only in the Word of God when this horror presented itself before my eyes.

Ok, my rant is over

I don’t know exactly what I’m going to do to help our brothers and sisters who are suffering around the world. I don’t know exactly what I’m going to do when persecution hits our land, our towns, even our local streets. I do know that I’m going to keep praying, I’m going to give of my time and my resources as much as I can, and I’m going to continue trying to know Him and make Him known. I’m going to walk in faith that God is mighty to work through my meager efforts and that in the end, maybe He'll choose to make a difference through me.

Read more at:
ISIS and Christians: Why do we care?
Good and Evil: Who we are in a world of evil
What's the Point: Living Hope in a Violent World
Religious Extremism: Why it's a good thing

Faced with Evil: What would I have done in Nazi Germany?

I’ve often wondered what I would have done if I’d been alive during World War II and lived in Europe. Would I have known about the atrocities committed at the approximately 1,200 Nazi concentration camps? If I’d known, would I have done something?

Or, would the public atrocities have been sufficient to rise my sense of injustice? How many yellow stars would have had to walk down the street in front of me before I would have sympathized with the disgrace? How many friends would have had to board a train for mandatory encampment at a labor facility? When would I have realized those labor facilities were actually extermination camps?

Would I have been a Corrie ten Boom who defied the law to save Jewish lives before her own imprisonment? Would I be able to teach a message of grace and forgiveness after enduring Ravensbrueck Concentration Camp?

Or would I have lived in denial and fear? Would I have turned the other way? I don’t know.

I do know this…

I’ve read Night, The Diary of Anne Frank, The Hiding Place, and The Auschwitz Escape and thought “Never Again.”

I’ve watched Schindler’s List, The Pianist, Defiance, and The Boy in the Striped Pajamas and thought “Never Again.”

I’ve walked the halls of the US Holocaust Memorial Museum and Yad Vashem and thought “Never Again.”

I’ve stood before the ovens of Dachau concentration camp and thought “Never Again.”

And yet, I still don’t know what I would do if I lived then and there. You see, it’s much easier to care – to feel a heart tug of compassion – than it is to take action. It’s easier to think grandiose thoughts after the tragedy than it is to predict brave actions before.

Why all this pondering? A few reasons…

First, today is Holocaust Remembrance Day or Yom Ha’Shoah, a day to remember what happened, teach of it to a new generation, and pray history doesn’t repeat itself. After all, as Santayana said, “Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”

Second, I finished reading “The Auschwitz Escape” by Joel Rosenberg a few days ago. Although historical fiction, Joel based the story on the real-life actions of four men who dared to risk their lives, not only to save countless individuals but also to expose the Nazi’ atrocities to a world who would have rather stayed oblivious. The well-written and well-researched novel forces us to consider questions such as “What would I have done?”

Third, and most importantly, I’m pondering these questions because it may happen here and now; the outcome may be worse than it was then and there. I consider the question, “What would I have done?” because I may be forced to answer it by my actions.

Christian and Jewish persecution is increasing at an incredible rate. Headlines of horror come out of Syria, Iraq, Iran, Egypt, Somalia, Nigeria, Kenya, Libya, and many more. It’s easy to ignore them because it’s the Middle East and northern Africa – isn’t something bad always going on over there?

But evil – left unchecked – spreads.

Headlines now come out of places like France and England… and the United States.

What I do Know

Like I said, I don’t know what I would have done if I lived in Europe during World War II. I also don’t know what I’ll do to help those suffering in the hands of evil today.

I do know one thing, however. I know God’s Word promises a lot of good things in the midst of evil persecution. I know it not by my own experience; I’ve never suffered persecution. I know it because God’s Word says it and His promises are a truer source of information than any personal anecdote could ever be.

I know that in the midst of persecution, God’s Word promises…

• the advancement of His message (Philippians 1:12, 18)
• encouragement and confidence (Philippians 1:14)
• a reason to rejoice (Philippians 1:18, James 1:2)
• the ability to endure (2 Corinthians 1:6)
• comfort (2 Corinthians 1:3-4)
• the ability to trust Him through prayer (2 Corinthians 1:9-11)
• growth and maturity (James 1:4)

I wrote more in-depth about these in Everything We Need. They don’t seem logical or possible but they are our reality. What a hope in an unknown future! After all, as Corrie herself once said, "I've experienced His Presence in the deepest, darkest hell that men can create... I have tested the promises of the Bible, and believe me, you can count on them."

What's the Point: Living hope in a violent world

Stories of horror at the hands of ISIS’ members continue to pour out of the Middle East. In fact, what began as a trickle of atrocities has grown into a raging river as incidents increase in frequency and barbarity. This week, they reportedly kidnapped approximately 150 Christians from a region in northeast Syria. Early reports put this number at about 90; subsequent reports have increased it to 150. I say with a prayerful sorrow the future is bleak for those followers of Jesus. News reports have also surfaced that ISIS funds their operation in part through harvesting organs, such as kidneys, from prisoners. An alternate source of their income is selling young girls and women into sex trafficking.

My older two daughters asked me the same question at different times last week. “Is this it? Is our world falling apart? Is this the end?”

My daughters were two and newborn when Al-Qaeda flew airplanes into the Twin Towers, the Pentagon, and a field in Pennsylvania. I realized the world they grew up in would look very different than did my childhood environment. I realized that was their reality – better to help them deal with it than sugar coat their exposures. I answered, “We don’t know for sure. ISIS’ behavior is consistent with biblical prophecies of the end times. Many Christians are sensing that this will lead to that time soon.”

They both responded in similar ways; basically, “Then what’s the point?”

What is the point?

Our purpose doesn’t change
God gave us signs to watch for which indicate the end is drawing near. However, He chose to withhold exactly when those events would begin. I believe one reason why is because our job doesn’t change whether we know the exact time or not.

• Love God with all your heart, soul, and strength (Deuteronomy 6:5).
• Love other people as much as you love yourself (Matthew 22:39).
• Love faithfulness, act justly, and walk humbly with God (Micah 6:8).

It doesn’t matter if Jesus returns today, in a decade, or in a century, our call as Jesus’ followers is the same. We are to know, love, and serve God. We are to love and encourage a hurting world. We are to behave in a way that honors God and glorifies His name.

We have a message of hope
Current events in the Middle East may or may not lead to the fulfillment of biblical end-time prophecies. Either way, we have a message of hope for the world. I don’t know about you, but the number of hurting people in my life is increasing. Economic problems, family relationships, drugs, unemployment, and many others are all surface indicators of hard times. Below the surface, though, much bigger problems arise under names such as fear, depression, rejection, bitterness, insecurity, disbelief, and deception. Followers of Jesus, we have a message of unconditional love, strengthening joy, unsurpassable peace and gentleness, limitless patience, sacrificial kindness and goodness, unwavering faith, and supernatural self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). We have everything we need to accomplish the task to which He calls us – the task of reaching the world with His gospel of grace (2 Peter 1:3, Philippians 1:6, Matthew 28:19-20).

We have hope even in midst of persecution
I can’t speak for the hundreds of Christians held captive in Syria right now. But I can speak for countless others throughout history who’ve faced persecution for following Jesus. I can speak the words of Paul who endured a lifetime of persecution, “For me, living is Christ and dying is gain” (Philippians 1:21).

In studying Paul’s testimony, along with others in the New Testament, I discovered seven aspects of persecution that seem contradictory to human thinking…

• Serves to advance the Gospel
• Encourages others and reduces fear
• Causes rejoicing
• Promotes patient endurance
• Teaches us to trust God and about the power of prayer
• Is a source of comfort
• Brings us to maturity

You may read more in depth on this area in Everything We Need: God’s Path to Know Him Better.

The point is Jesus, the Messiah

I’d like to give you rose-colored glasses through which to view the world. I’d like to give solutions for defeating ISIS and promises that bloody religious persecution will never reach America’s shores. Just like I realized when my daughters were babies, that isn’t the world in which we live anymore. We can ignore it or deny it; reality doesn’t change.

But I can give you a point – a reason – to endure it. I can give you a message of hope. Our hope and reason are both in the name of Jesus. One day, after seven years of tribulation, He will return and reign peacefully over the entire earth. Until then, we have a purpose that doesn’t change. We are to love and serve God, love and encourage others to believe in Him, and live in a way that glorifies His name. In the midst of all the turmoil, only Jesus’ followers have a message of hope found in salvation through faith in Jesus. He alone has the power to bring comfort, encouragement, patience, rejoicing, and more out of barbaric persecution.

Priorities: Figuring out what's real and worth it

Talked to Jimmy on the phone yesterday about some problems – the normal stuff like not enough money, not enough time, why won’t the kids behave, why so much stuff is falling apart. We wrapped up our conversation with our normal “good-bye” and “love you” but this time I also thought, “I’m so thankful he’s not part of the problems.” He’s what holds me up through the problems as he reminds me of important things like trust and faith. Hopefully I do the same for him when problems are firing at him.

I’ve also been acutely thankful for my girls over the last couple days – not for what they’ve done but because of who they are. They’re my daughters, my family. That’s enough to bind me to them forever.

I think that’s why this post by Glenn Beck on Facebook this morning struck something inside me.

What is real and worth it beside family?

You can see from my opening comments how important family is to me. Yes, it’s real and it’s so worth it but it’s not “the most important project of all.”

Here’s the rest of his list… Work, parenting, shopping, finances, outside activities, church work, spouse, friends, and extended family. And oh yeah, still find time to read Scripture and pray.

There it is – tacked on the end just in case we manage to find time – is the most important of all.

We may lose our job. Tragedy may strike our children, spouse, friends, or extended family; they may be gone in a heartbeat. The money may disappear completely. Outside activities and yes, even church work, can crumble away. Are we ready to say in those moments – when these horrors strike our own existence – that God is in control and that is enough?

Personal loss, natural disaster, economic failure, job markets, housing and community, and relationships will all come…and they will go. God doesn’t do that though.

He doesn’t “change like shifting shadows” (James 1:17 NIV).

He is “the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End” (Revelation 21:6).

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever” (Hebrews 13:8).

How do I do it?

That’s the next big question, isn’t it? I’m first to admit that sometimes it’s hard.

Those hard times prompt the phone calls to my husband like I talked about at the beginning of this article. Or a friend. But they also prompt me to fall to my knees in prayer. Scripture promises, “Cast your burden on the Lord, and He will sustain you; He will never allow the righteous to be shaken” (Psalm 55:22).

My husband is a great man who can point me to Christ but he can’t solve all my problems. I have some incredibly wonderful friends who have been there for me often over the years. They also can’t sustain me, though. It’s got to be God.

“I called to the Lord in my distress, and I cried to my God for help. From His temple He heard my voice and my cry to Him reached His ears. … He reached down from heaven and took hold of me; He pulled me out of deep waters. … The Lord was my support.” (Psalm 18:6, 16, 18; Hover here to read Psalm 18 to see the power of God’s deliverance when we cry for help.)

We can’t only cry to God when the problems hit, however. We endure the hard times because we walk in relationship with Him all the time. We read His Word… no, we study it. We know it. We allow it to transform us from the mess we used to be into the person He created us to be.

Seven Roles, One Woman talks about this quite a bit from a woman’s perspective. It’s hard to balance being a wife, mom, businesswoman, friend, servant, homemaker, and oh yeah, a child of God. We try to juggle all of them and keep everyone happy. In the end, though, balance starts to come when we realize that being a child of God isn’t an “oh yeah” that we tag on at the end.

It’s the foundation upon which all the others rest…

• It’s the love needed to be the wife (or husband).
• It’s the grace mandatory to being a mom (or dad).
• It’s the wisdom desired to be a business person.
• It’s the kindness essential to being a friend.
• It’s the compassion required to be a servant.
• It’s the sacrifice important to being a homemaker.

Being a child of God is the power to make it happen because “He who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6).

And if Glenn happens to read this - or anyone else trying to figure it out with very real scars in their own life - please know I didn't ignore that part of the original Facebook post. That's some hard stuff as well and maybe something to save for another time.

By Faith: Surrounded by witnesses of God's promise

I graduated from a Christian high school a couple years – um, decades – ago. Since it was a Christian rather than public school, we had a class verse. I heard it many times throughout my four years of secondary education – many, many times.

You may also be familiar with this verse – it’s a fairly popular one. Sometimes constant exposure to a particular passage makes us think we know what it says. However, sometimes we hear the words over and over while the message never penetrates our lives. Or, we get part of the message but more awaits us right beneath the surface.

Last month I asked my friends to share their favorite verses with me. I then picked one each day to use on our Grow Barefoot social media. This one happened to be on my list.

I made my picture to post on social media that day while pondering the verse. As I did so, a new thought occurred to me, “Who are these witnesses and why are they surrounding me?” For all these years, those questions had never occurred to me.

Who are the witnesses?

Never casually skim over a “therefore” in the Bible. We tend to divide one chapter from another as if their two topics aren’t related but when we see the word “therefore” we should pay attention because what we’re about to read is a culmination of what's been said.

It turns out the previous chapter is one of the most powerful and inspirational in the entire Bible! Followers of Christ commonly refer to Hebrews 11 as the “Hall of Faith” or the “Faith Chapter.” It lists a group of people known for their faith; people who sacrificed all – reputations, homelands, friends, prosperity – even their very lives.

What did they witness?

The Old Testament (OT) is the best source to understand the New Testament. In the OT, a witness served one of two possible duties. They either testified of the wrongdoing of another person like a witness does today in a court of law. Or, they testified to an agreement between two other parties, much like a witness at a wedding. In fact, even inanimate objects such as stones often witnessed an agreement between two parties. Remember that.

Going back to our cloud of witnesses in Hebrews 12:1, no one has done anything wrong of which these OT heroes of the faith need to testify. So I don’t see that the first possibility fits our situation. The OT heroes of the faith are witness to an agreement made between us and God.

The book of Hebrews calls this agreement a “promise;” it begins describing the promise in chapter four…

Some may have fallen in the desert as they wandered for forty years (Hebrews 3:12-18) but “the promise to enter His rest remains” (Hebrews 4:1). The Israelites entered the Promised Land as they crossed the Jordan River but rest in a spiritual Promised Land still remains today.

• A land promised to “those who inherit the promises through faith and perseverance” (Hebrews 6:12).
• A promise confirmed with an oath by an unchangeable God (Hebrews 6:17).
• A promise passed down through Abraham (Hebrews 7:6).
• A promise on which Jesus Christ founded and mediated a new covenant (Hebrews 8:6).
• A promised eternal inheritance made possible by Jesus’ spilled blood and sacrificial death (Hebrews 9:15).
• A promise for those who persevere in doing the will of God until the end (Hebrews 10:36-37).
• A promise passed down through Isaac and Jacob (Hebrews 11:9).
• A promise of a city built by God, of a country in heaven (Hebrews 11:10, 13-16).
• A promise of countless descendants through a sacrificed son (Hebrews 11:17).

We’ve been building through most of the book of Hebrews. We reach the final mention of the promise just a few words before our great cloud of witnesses. In Hebrews 11:39-40 we read, “These [the OT heroes of the faith] were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. God had planned something better…” (Click here to read what God had planned. It’s in an article I wrote a few months ago.)

Why do they surround us?

As I’ve studied through this, a single word keeps popping up in my mind. Gilgal. You may not be familiar with it; if you are, you may not see the connection. So here we go.

I mentioned earlier that the Israelites crossed the Jordan River to enter the Promised Land after wandering in the desert for forty years. “After the entire nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the Lord spoke to Joshua: ‘Choose 12 men from the people, one man for each tribe, and command them: Take 12 stones from this place in the middle of the Jordan where the priests are standing, carry them with you, and set them down at the place where you spend the night’” (Joshua 4:1-3).

The men did as Joshua instructed. “Joshua set up in Gilgal the 12 stones they had taken from the Jordan” (Joshua 4:20). The name Gilgal means wheel or a large circle of stones. The stones served as a memorial, in short, “that all the people of the earth may know that the Lord’s hand is mighty, and so that you may always fear the Lord your God” (Joshua 4:24).

What does this have to do with Hebrews 12:1? The word for “surrounding” means to lay objects around something or to encircle it with those objects. Joshua laid the stones in a circle at Gilgal to remind the people that God is mighty and they were to fear Him as they entered the Promised Land. Likewise, God lays the witnesses around us to testify of His might and to remind us to fear Him – not our circumstances. In other words, to live by faith.

So…

God has made this incredible promise to us that we may enter the Promised Land – an eternal home in heaven with Him. The great heroes in chapter 11 witnessed that promise and, by faith, held out for the greater home of eternity.

Their stories encircle us as memorial stones. But God didn’t give us only twelve stones; He set up so many stones around us that He couldn’t even list all of them in the verses of chapter eleven (See Hebrews 11:32-38). He set up so many that together they form an indistinguishable and seemingly unlimited cloud around us.

They stand as a witness to the promise made between God and us that by our faith He will bring us into the Promised Land.

They stand as a witness to remind us of His power in our circumstances.

They stand as a witness to fear Him, not our situation.

They stand to remind us to live by faith.

Good & Evil: What to do in a world of evil

The horrors of evil elicit many different responses when they fall upon our ears. When you read my article of Boko Haram butchering Christians in Nigeria last week, I’m sure your thought responses were as varied as is our reading population. I’m sure it was the same when you heard of ISIS beheading a second American journalist, Steven Sotloff. Or when you heard of any act of evil carried out on the innocent in recent days.

Some people stop listening / reading as the pain and suffering are more than they can bear.

A need to fight for justice overcomes other people in the face of evil.

Others bury their heads in the sand as they deny such evil could possibly exist.

For some, frustration mounts as a lack of resources or opportunities squelches the desire to help in any way possible.

Hopefully at least a few whisper prayers for those who hurt in the hands of evil.

Psalm 37 – Good & Evil

Last week we began a study on Psalm 37. We considered some characteristics we should have as we live as children of God in a world of evil. Ok, “considered” is such a gentle word – it’s more like those characteristics plunged into our soul. They reminded us we aren’t of this world; we’re made to live different. This week we’ll pull out some parts of Psalm 37 that help us know what to do before we read next week what God promises to do. Then, we’ll wrap it up comparing the outcome that awaits both the good and the evil.

What to do in a world of evil

37:3 – Trust in the Lord and do what is good. Trusting God empowers us to do what is good. Our excuses become weak in the presence of His truth. I came across a verse a few weeks ago when Jimmy was in Africa. I’ll admit it; I was stressing a little over some stuff. I had to write it out and post it where I’d see it often, “God is able to make every grace overflow to you, so that in every way, always having everything you need, you may excel in every good work” (2 Corinthians 9:8).

We can trust Him in the face of evil; we can even step out and do good in the face of evil. We can trust and do good because God has the situation under control. We will always have everything we need to excel in every good work.

37:4 – Take delight in the Lord. You can be happy in His presence; you can smile when you think about Him. Excitement can come over you at the thought of talking to Him. You can find a true relationship.

King David, who wrote Psalm 37, knew how to delight in the Lord. For example, he also wrote “I rejoiced with those who said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the LORD’” (Psalm 122:1). The ancient Israelites rejoiced to ascend to the Temple in Jerusalem because the Spirit of God dwelt there. For us, the Spirit of God dwells within each of us as followers of Christ. We can rejoice in a relationship with God even in the midst of an evil world.

37:5 – Commit your way to the Lord. Commit means “to roll” (Hebrew: galal) which may seem odd but is highly significant. It’s more than I can get into here. In short, let’s think of it this way… Go full circle with God. Allow Him to mark you as His child, hold fast to His truth, totally believe Him, and not just in Him.

“The LORD then said to Joshua, ‘Today I have rolled away (Hebrew: galal) the disgrace of Egypt from you.’ Therefore, that place is called Gilgal to this day” (Joshua 5:9). Friend, God has rolled away the disgrace from your life. An adequate response is to roll away your own plans for your life. Commit your way to Him instead and allow Him to act even as evil abounds.

37:7 – Be silent before the Lord and wait expectantly for Him. God doesn’t need us to tell Him what to do or how to solve a problem. He needs us to be a willing vessel through which He can work to accomplish His plan. He needs us to wait on His plan; not make a mess even messier by jumping in with our own plan. “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth” (Psalm 46:10 NIV).

37:9, 34 – Put your hope in the Lord. That’s the HCSB version but almost all others translate this as “those who wait for the Lord.” It’s a figurative term that loses something in our English translations. The Hebrew word, qavah, literally means to collect or bind together. It’s the same idea as strands of string bound together to make a rope. In a world of evil, we can bind ourselves to God. We can tightly intertwine our lives with Him and His Word. “Wait for the Lord and keep His way, and He will exalt you to inherit the land” (Psalm 37:34).

37:27 – Turn away from evil and do what is good. We can’t do all these things if we haven’t turned away from the evil in our own lives. We’re not perfect; no one expects us to be. But, we can make a conscious effort to remove the evil in our own lives while also making an effort to do what is good. "Dear friend, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. The one who does good is of God; the one who does evil has not seen God" (3 John 1:11).

So,

As it turns out, we can do something in a world overrun by evil. We can trust God who is in control. We can do good to those around us in our own corners of the world. We can delight in God; after all, He loved us enough to give Himself for us even though we were part of that prevalent evil. We can roll away our own plans for our life and commit our plans to Him because we know He will act in our lives. We can wait for Him to speak rather than try and tell Him what He should do. We can intertwine our lives with Him so that all we do and say is for Him and His glory. We can do our best to not live like those who spread the evil upon our land.

We can make a difference. We can live the difference.

Click here to read the previous article in this series.

Click here to read the next article in this series.

Good & Evil: Who we are in a world of evil

Boko Haram, a Muslim extremist group in Nigeria, butchers Christians. “Butchers” isn’t too strong of a word; it’s morbidly accurate as the group slices and hacks at the bodies of the non-Muslims. They stop only long enough to determine if the sufferer is ready to renounce Christ and pledge allegiance to Allah. You can read more at VOM’s article, “You can’t kill my soul,” but I warn you that it might make you feel something – a churning of the stomach, a shudder of the spine, an inexplicable urge to fall to your knees and pray for someone in a far off land.

Evil is nothing new; persecution began when God accepted Abel’s sacrifice but not Cain’s resulting in Cain’s murderous assault on Abel (Genesis 4:1-12). Nevertheless, it is part of our current world. How do we face it? How do we respond to bloody stories that don’t fit with our comfortable church-pew Christianity?

I found some help – even some encouragement – in Psalm 37. I hope you’ll take a minute to read it now; all you have to do is click on the link. (Can I be honest here for a second and point out that a lot of people in this world would weep tears of joy for such easy access to the word of God?)

We’re going to take a look at Psalm 37 over the next four weeks. This article will consider who we are, the next two weeks we’ll look at what we do and what God does, and then the fourth week we’ll discuss the outcome.

Who are we? Characteristics of the righteous

I pulled this list of characteristics out of the text of the chapter. Let me start by saying that I dealt with some serious conviction while I did so. You know what I mean – those “Ouch” moments when you read God’s Word and the Spirit points out somewhere deep inside that you aren’t quite living up to what God is asking of you. Yeah, those. But here we go –

When confronted with evil, a child of God is…

37:1, 7, 8 – Not agitated. A confrontation with evil shouldn’t make us burn with anger. That’s hard, isn’t it? When I read the above article from VOM about the beheading of a little boy, anger burned within me. By all accounts, evil is spreading and prospering. Earthly armies can’t stop it but eventually Christ will. Trust me, evil doesn’t prosper and find victory in the end.

37:1 – Not envious. At first thought, why would we be envious of evildoers? But, let me admit, envy flickered in my mind when I found out the ISIS army has $2,000,000 a day in income just from the oil fields they’ve conquered. But again, their success is temporary.

37:6 – Righteousness that shines like the dawn. This isn’t me showing off all my good works to make sure everyone sees them. My righteousness is in Christ; if it shines like the dawn then that is Him in me shining out to the world. That’s a good thing.

37:8 – Not angry nor enraged, in addition to not agitated. Keep the breathing under control; don’t spew words of poison. Stay steady. If you believe God is in control then you should be under control.

37:11 – Humble. Remember, Christ’s righteousness shines through us, not our own goodness. Honestly, we don’t have any goodness on our own anyway. He’s in control. As a child of God, we lay aside our own pride and positions to advance His kingdom.

37:18 – Blameless. We’re not perfect; we’re not sinless. The idea behind being blameless is to be complete or whole. Christ in us – His joy and love manifested in us – completes us.

37:21, 26 – Gracious and giving. We can’t hold tight to what God has given us. When we see evil, our response is to help, reach out, give, and extend grace to those who hurt as a result.

37:22 – Blessed by God. God chose to look on us in favor. He chose to come before us with the greatest gift possible – the life of His Son. He chose to restore us through the sacrifice of that Son. We are blessed.

37:30, 31 – Wise, just, and know God’s instruction. This is another one we can only claim because Christ works in us and through us. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.

37:37 – Man of peace. Evil – characterized by pride, anger, rage, greed, and foolishness – leads to restlessness, destruction, and death. But a child of God knows peace even in the midst of evil.

I don’t know about you, but this list will stay with me this week as I see evil become more prevalent in our world. All of these characteristics are contrary to how the world says we should live. If we can implement them in our lives, we can make a difference. We can live the difference. We can shine the righteousness of Christ in a world of darkness.

Please click here for the next article in the series.

Floods in the Desert: Praying for a messed up world

I began my last article with a list of some of the concerns in our world right now. As I typed the list, I thought, “Jimmy doesn’t even know about much of this as he’s virtually separated from world news in such a remote location.”

Jimmy didn’t need access to world news, however, to know people are in danger and hurting. He flew into his own situation right there.

First, let me catch you up on his location. After finishing the current solar panel installation, he flew to the village where he led a previous solar install two years ago. The following is a description of what he found there – some written by me from a compilation of his text messages, most written by Chica (the wife of the family with whom he’s staying.)

Yikes, did it flood.

The rainy season had been off and on. However, the night before Jimmy flew here – literally hours before the plane took off from his solar project – the rainy season turned on. 

A flash flood came through; the pressure of the water blew four culverts out of the road. The road is made of hard red clay. A few sections have culverts made of concrete and large causeways built under them to allow water to flow north to south to the millet fields. The water was so much and so fast – plus engineering didn't take water pressure into account – that it washed away these causeways.

So now the area is completely flooded. The floods extend for miles and miles and miles; the causeways are huge drop off cliffs. They cannot fix the road until all the water covering it completely subsides and dries up. That won't be until after rainy season and some strong African sun. Rainy season ends in October; then, the roads have to dry up and work vehicles have to get here. It may easily be November before they begin to fix the roads.

The broken culverts happened right outside of town. The truck stop and outlying neighborhoods are under water. I keep thinking, “Don't drink this water! We don't need typhoid and cholera.”

But, I know others are thinking, “Free and convenient water.”

It's all perspective, I suppose.

We visited neighbors today. Everyone is talking about what the floods mean for our community –

• The flood wiped out fields that farmers planted only a couple of weeks ago. All that work, all that seed, and all that future harvest – gone.
• Food and fuel prices will be high and then higher as the harvest will not be brought in. Prices have already increased by 25% in one day.
• Our village is cut off from the road to the north, the country to the east, and the capital city. All of our goods come from those locations. We are literally an island right now.

Folks are scared. What does this mean? They don't know. Will there be enough food? Will the mills still run to grind the grain if the gasoline runs out for the generators? What about medicines for the hospital? People are thinking about the villages that weren’t flooded, but are cut off by the flood. Those people have no way to the market, no way to the hospital.

Some people are driving large market trucks to a certain point in the road; they then use dug out canoes to bring goods into our town. So some things are arriving. That is good. If they can keep essential supplies arriving, that is great.

Kap and Jimmy wanted to see if they could offer some aid. They went to the governor’s office but he had left on travels. His offices are chest deep in water. So, with no local leader, figuring out how to get to people who know what is happening is difficult to chaotic right now. The folks are worried about the river – which is on the other side of town – overflowing its banks.

So, the overall feeling right now is fear. And helplessness. So then more fear.

Please pray for us - that we can help with the immediate crisis and that we can bold in our faith. Pray that we can work past the fear and helplessness of being cut off from the surrounding communities as we try to reach a people who are cut off from the grace of our living Savior.