You Will Make It!

How is your bracket?

The reason people ask that question is because, by now, we have all failed.  Sometimes life seems like that NCAA bracket, with our mistakes giving us a common denominator.  What did the famous Scottish poet Burns say, "The best laid plans of mice and men often go astray."    

The situation of the Israelites as described in Jeremiah 29 and 30 was worse than anyone could imagine.  The leaders were killed or taken captive.  Dead bodies were everywhere with no one to even bury them.  The temple was burned and completely destroyed.  And those who were still alive were treated like cattle and transported to be slaves in Babylon.  In the midst of this failure is where God spoke the phrase we like to remind our young people, "God has good plans for you, to give you a future and a hope."

Furthermore, Jeremiah encourages the people to build houses, plant crops, and give sons and daughters in marriage.  In short, don't quit.  Continue doing the things, the responsibilities, that God has given you.  God is never done with bringing us into His inheritance, but sometimes there are other internal changes that have greater priority in order to be capable of handling the good He has planned for us.  Adversity is a great motivator to seek God.  There is a saying from WWI, that every man has a God in a foxhole.  And that is exactly what Jeremiah reminds the people that God is calling, "When you seek Me with all your heart I will be found."  Use the current need and situation to lead you into a greater dependence on God's promises and His faithfulness.  God is in the business of restoring what the enemy has stolen, and turning what was meant for evil into good.  He who calls you is faithful, and He will do it.  He clearly has a plan for our future and our hope.  We will make it.

In Jeremiah 30, God promises some powerful encouragement.  "Yet I will not make a complete end of you, but I will correct you in justice."  No one enjoys being corrected, but God's ways are life and peace.  Revival, or the abundance of His life and peace, always starts with people humbling themselves.  God promises to dwell with the those who are humble and contrite in heart.  The trials of today often cause us to "break up the fallow ground" and let the rain of God's mercy and righteousness soften our hearts.  After humbling ourselves before God, He releases His intended purpose, " I will restore health to you and heal you of your wounds," says the Lord.  (Jeremiah 30:17)  

Jesus, His resurrection and the promise of ours, is our hope.  We are destined to share His nature and glory forever.  God has given us this awesome vision so that no matter what happens, we know that we will not perish.  Not only will we not perish, but all things continue to work for our good, for us who are called according to His purpose.  The verse "without a vision the people perish" may also be translated, "without a vision the people cast off restraint." (NKJV)  The point is that unless we know the hope, the vision of "we will make it," we are tempted to give up and cast off the disciplines of living for the Lord.  

Our bracket may fail, our situation may not always be as planned, there may be a need to seek God and repent, but our God never changes and His word to your heart today is "You will make it."

Chosen, Count the Cost

Chosen.  Do you remember in sports when you were young and older kids were picking teams and you wondered if you would ever be picked?  And how good it was when you were picked early because someone considered you valuable.  The good news today is that you not only have been chosen but you are considered valuable as His treasure.  In Ephesians 1:4 it states before the foundation of the world you have been chosen to be holy and blameless before Him. Jesus has called you and chosen you to be His light in the world. He has prepared works for us beforehand that we should walk in them.

Whenever God calls you to do something, He also provides and enables you to accomplish it.  However, there is a problem.  Because God chose you, the world hates you (John 15:19), just as it hated Jesus. In short, there is always a price to pay if you are going to do something for the Lord of if you are going to obey Him.  After God told Moses to go to Egypt and set His people free, the Egyptian taskmasters made it harder on the Hebrew slaves forcing them to get the straw and make the same number of bricks. David, called to be king, had to endure the jealous attacks of Saul. Scripture is filled with examples of the trials God's people had to overcome in order to fulfill their call.

Jesus uses parables to explain the need to count the cost.  However, Paul, in the New Testament, who went through a myriad of challenges including mobs of Jews, shipwrecks, stoning, rejection and betrayal, is known for bringing the Gospel to the Gentiles and writing a majority of the epistles.  He is not known for the battles he had to fight.  What was his perspective that made all the difference?  He considered the cost as nothing compared to the glory that was to be revealed.

Yes, there is a cost.  We do go through the valley of the shadow of death.  However, God is with us and He continually prepares a table before us in the midst of our enemies and surely His goodness and mercy follow us every day.  When God is with us, even the attacks of the enemy get turned into good and God provides the strength to endure and shows the way of escape.  Thank you for being willing to fight the good fight of faith, and for doing the work God has given you.  However, know that there is One who will come again soon bringing His rewards with Him, and at that point everything and every price we have paid in our commitment to Jesus and His Word will be a million times worth it.  Keep the vision of pleasing God in all you do, for without the vision people perish.  

Count the cost as real, but compared to the privilege of being chosen and treasured as valuable in God's kingdom, treat it is as nothing. You are chosen and will succeed, nothing else matters or can stop you.  

 

Got Hope--It's What You See?

We live in a world that has lost hope.  Even in America, there is such division and hatred that the majority of comments in the news and social media are negative.  Discouragement and even suicide are often reported among teens.  People do not see things getting better and therefore, in their own despair can only strike out in critical judgment.

Psalm 11 asks "If the foundations are shaken, what can the righteous do?"  The more focused question is what is hope and how do we get hope?.  We commonly use the word "hope" to mean "wish", such as we hope the Broncos win today.  However, the Biblical definition of hope is the confident expectation of what God has promised.  When man fell, he allowed sin and death to enter the human race, and a condition that Romans 8 describes as "the whole creation groans...from the bondage of corruption."  Naturally our minds tend to likewise see things going wrong, have anxiety and fear from things out of control, and in general, expect negative circumstances.  Have you ever heard of Murphy's law?

There is an answer.  We can change the "old flat tire" of negative thinking and put on a brand new tire of "positive vision."  Proverbs declares "without a vision, people perish."  The Word of God was given to man to renew his thinking and transform his picture of life.  As a man thinks so is he.  Thinking is more than rational thoughts.  It is the imagination, the picturing, the vision and goals that drive our actions and well-being.  What do you see in your mind when someone mentions a dog?  What if we added a large fierce dog?  Or a small black and white beagle?  The point is that words trigger a picture in our mind.

God wants us to have a living hope, an image that He makes "all things work together for our good."
His Word paints a picture of us being loved with an everlasting love, of being overcomers, and of being a people who enjoy abundant life and peace through His Spirit.  He sent forth His Word and delivered them.  His Word delivers us from our negative carnal thinking to embrace a new picture of us as now being His workmanship capable of being a light in the darkness.  This truth opens up a whole new world of purpose and hope for the future.  God Himself is for us and with us.  How can we fail?

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled that does not fade away. ( Peter 1:3)  This truth is like an anchor to the soul, that through the finished work of Jesus and with the same Spirit that raised Him from the dead now living in us, we are assured to make it..  We let the Word of God transform our thinking and what we see God has done and continues to do for us.

By faith, and faith is the assurance of things hoped for, we transfer our hope into reality.  Take time to deliberately let the Word of God paint fresh pictures of hope and vision in you.  Read it, think about what it says, picture this in your life, and continue to meditate on His truth until you can see it.  God is faithful to be found by those who seek Him.  What do you see?

To Me or Not To Me

The other day a student inquired about coming to CedarWood to acquire credits to graduate early. The disturbing thing about the interview was that the enrollment prospect's entire focus was her desire to graduate early and what teachers could do for her to get special individual courses and attention. There was no awareness that, as a high school student, she would be looked up to by the younger students and could contribute something significant to the school and the other students.

This caused me to reflect on how easily human nature operates in what can be called "tunnel vision." We tend to only think in terms of what we want and fail to consider others or that our life is designed to bless others. Fallen human nature thinks we are "God" and that life should revolve around us and our wants.

Jesus in the parable of the talents addresses the one who hid the one talent with the words, "You wicked and lazy servant..." Since this whole section in Matthew 24 and 25 is really talking about the end times, it becomes apparent that men will continue to regress in these choices, both to wickedness and to laziness.

Entertainment has never been so great in quality and quantity. Everything from HD video games, streaming sporting events, social networks, and a myriad of other activities which consume time and attention, there clearly are more great diversions available. Attraction to wickedness such as pornography and perversion through media options will increase in the last days, even more than now.

On the other characteristic, maybe because of all these distractions, more and more people will choose to not get really involved in any worthwhile pursuits that take whole-hearted commitment, but rather just do what they have to do to get by. An example is a student being content to get "C's" with no effort or the employee only doing the bare minimum to pick up a paycheck. Unfortunately, sin does not stand still and the laziness quality demonstrated in society will likewise grow out of proportion as we approach the end.

We can't change the world but can seek to influence it by our truth and example. Jesus has changed our heart by making us new creations "in true righteousness" (Ephesians 4:24) and has given us His power "to will and to work" for His pleasure. We do not have to be like the "Me" world. We can draw our life from the Word of God and be led by His Spirit in a daily choice to live for Him. To pick up our cross daily means to choose "Not to Me."