Category Archives: Scripture
Psalm 141: Desperate Prayers
“O LORD, I cry out to you. Come quickly to me!
Pay attention to me when I cry out to you!
May you accept my prayer like incense,
my uplifted hands like the evening offering!”
With a start like that, this psalm sounds as if David’s enemies were in hot pursuit. He probably wrote it while hiding in a cave, starving and clinging to his last hope for salvation, right? Consider the urgency of his plea and all those exclamation marks! But look what comes next:
“O LORD, place a guard on my mouth!
Protect the opening of my lips!
Do not let me have evil desires,
or participate in sinful activities
with men who behave wickedly.
I will not eat their delicacies.
May the godly strike me in love and correct me.”
Psalm 141 isn’t about deliverance from armies of enemies. It’s not about being saved from starvation or physical death. No, it’s a desperate plea for sanctification.
A friend once confided in me about her sin. She said she wanted help to grieve over her sin; she didn’t know how. Instead of mourning her sinful acts or repenting of unrighteous choices, she would simply try harder. She would determine to do better next time. But she felt deep in her heart that she should be more upset.
Don’t we often fall into similar ruts? We become so comfortable with grace and forgiveness that we forget how things really are: we deserve death yet the Son of God took on flesh and died a horrible death to save us from those sins we so easily dismiss … gossip, pride, even little “white” lies we tell our children.
I want to pray like David did. I want to take my sin seriously. I want to be desperate for God. I want to cry out to Him in urgency, ardently seeking the transformation only He can produce in my life.
Like this:
10 on the 10th: Read with Me Highlights
I’ve done Meredith‘s 10 on the 10th bloggy carnival a few times. It’s only right that I jump in on this her last official go-round. Since I don’t have ten interesting things to say today, I decided to instead share ten passages that have made me think. We’ve been doing this Read with Me Challenge for more than ten months now –
Oooh, that would have been smart! I should have shared ten things from our ten months of reading! Oh, well, I’m hardly that clever and certainly not that proactive to think of blog posts months in advance.
Before I interrupt myself again and accidentally turn this into ten random thoughts about nothing, let me just kick off.
Here are ten highlights I’ve made in my recent reading. I’ve highlighted much, much more, but these are the first ten noted in my Kindle. All are quoted from the NET version of the Bible, emphasis mine.
- “But as for me, I would seek God, and to God I would set forth my case. He does great and unsearchable things, marvelous things without number; He gives rain on the earth, and sends water on the fields; He sets the lowly on high, that those who mourn are raised to safety. He frustrates the plans of the crafty so that their hands cannot accomplish what they had planned!” — Job 5:8–12
- “Blessed is the man whom God corrects, so do not despise the discipline of the Almighty. For He wounds, but He also bandages; He strikes, but His hands also heal. He will deliver you … He will redeem you … You will be protected … and you will not be afraid of the destruction when it comes.” — Job 5:17–21
- “A person’s wisdom brightens his appearance, and softens his harsh countenance.” — Ecclesiastes 8:1
- “Be amazed at this, O heavens! Be shocked and utterly dumbfounded,” says the LORD. “Do so because my people have committed a double wrong: they have rejected me, the fountain of life-giving water, and they have dug cisterns for themselves, cracked cisterns which cannot even hold water.” — Jeremiah 2:12–13
- “Like a farmer breaking up hard unplowed ground, you must break your rebellious will and make a new beginning; just as a farmer must clear away thorns lest the seed is wasted, you must get rid of the sin that is ruining your lives … You must genuinely dedicate yourselves to the LORD and get rid of everything that hinders your commitment to Me.” — Jeremiah 4:3–4
- “Wise people should not boast that they are wise. Powerful people should not boast that they are powerful. Rich people should not boast that they are rish. If people want to boast, they should boast about this: They should boast that they understand and know Me. They should boast that they know and understand that I, the LORD, act out of faithfulness, fairness, and justice in the earth and that I desire people to do these things,” says the LORD. –Jeremiah 9:23–24
- “You study the Scriptures thoroughly because yo uthink in them you possess eternal life, and it is these same Scriptures that testify about me, but you are not willing to come to Me so that you may have life.” — John 5:40
- “I tell you the solemn truth, everyone who practices sin is a slave of sin. The slave does not remain int he family forever, but the son remains forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be really free.” — John 8:34–36
- “… His divine power has bestowed on us everything necessary for life and godliness through the rich knowledge of the One who called us by His own glory and excellence. Through these things He has bestowed on us His precious and most magnificent promises, so that by means of what was promised you may become partakers of the divine nature … For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith excellence, to excellence knowledge; to knowledge, self-control; to self-control, perseverance; to perseverance, godliness; to godliness, brotherly affection; to brotherly affection, unselfish love. For if these things are really yours and are continually increasing, they will keep you from becoming ineffective and unproductive in your pursuit of knowing our Lord Jesus Christ more intimately.” — 2 Peter 1:3–8
- “The Lord is not slow concerning His promise, as some regard slowness, but is being patient toward you, because He does not wish for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.” — 2 Peter 3:9
For more 10 on the 10th participants, visit Life at 7000 Feet.
Reflections on 1 Kings 19 (Read with Me Check-in)
Too often people view the Bible as divided in purpose. They see the Old Testament as filled with boring laws and entertaining stories for kids, neither of which apply to us today. Then there’s the New Testament which, in contrast, reveals “relevant” stuff, like tools for mature and godly living.
Hear me now: The entire Bible is useful! The entire Bible is applicable! The entire Bible reveals God! And to know God is the only reason to read the Bible.
I read 1 Kings 19 this week and couldn’t believe how the words just jumped off the page at me. It was as if they were written specifically for me and the situation I currently face. I referenced part of the passage in yesterday’s post. My current struggles (which extend beyond the school decision) are irrelevant. The lessons, however, are extend beyond time and circumstances.
You remember the story. (You probably read it four months ago.)
Elijah had just challenged all the prophets of Baal and won. God came down on Elijah’s drenched altar, instantly consuming the offer. This after the false prophets had spent hours pleading their god to hear them. They had danced and yelled, prayed and cut themselves, all to no avail. Elijah’s God proved to be the one true God. YAY! So, the people bow down and EJ (I have a friend whose son, Elijah, is nicknamed EJ. I like it. 
) rounds up all those evil prophets for a massacre.
He should be happy – right? Well, the wicked queen Jezebel isn’t happy. She sends EJ a message assuring him that his life is on the line. He runs away and hides in a cave. That’s where he cries out to God that all this mess is too much. He’s the only surviving prophet of God and nobody cares; he’s all alone and persecuted. (Anyone ever feel that way?) God sends an angel who tends to EJ’s needs. He guards him while he sleeps, he gives him food and then encouragement. The angel tells Elijah that God will pass by. There is a loud thunder and then an earthquake followed by a great fire. God is in none of these. As our hero cowers inside the cave he hears a gentle whisper, nothing more than a breeze. In this He finds God, who then questions him and commissions him again.
Here are a few things I drew from this one short chapter:
- God doesn’t need earth-shattering actions to make Himself known. A simple breeze or a sweet whisper can be enough to shake the earth and fill us with assurance and strength.
- When we’re overwhelmed and feel like we can’t go on, He will give us what we need to persevere — be that food, revitalization or just rest. He’ll guard over us, just like the angel He sent to guard over Elijah. He is with us, even if we can’t see Him.
- Humans are forgetful. Elijah had just been pivotal in one of the most powerful expressions of God’s power and presence. Yet here he was running and hiding in a cave simply because one woman spoke harsh words about him. Had he forgotten the power he just witnessed? Had he forgotten God?
- God always provides. Elijah was exhausted, scared, hungry and frustrated. God provided rest, protection, food and encouragement. He always gives us what we need for the moment. Sometimes not until the last moment, but that assumes our time-frame and not His. He knows what we need and will provide the strength we need until we get the next bundle of “supplies” for our journey.
- God gives second chances and we have choices. God asked Elijah twice: “What are you doing here?” I really think God was trying to gently urge Elijah back toward confident faith, the faith that would fearlessly stand up to hundreds of false prophets. Elijah answered the same both times, but we can answer differently. We can choose to recognize God, even when we can’t see Him.
So, what are you doing here? Why has God put you where you are and what are you doing while there? Are you fulfilling your purposes? Are you so distracted by your fears and circumstances that you can’t see God, even if He brushes your face with the breeze?
Here I am, God. I’m listening. I’m waiting. I’m watching.
I’m also reading. How about you? How are you doing?
Reflections on Genesis
Last summer I taught a class on the five women in Matthew’s genealogy of Christ. The list includes Tamar, Rahab, Bathsheba, Ruth and Mary. It’s a short list, but an intriguing one. The members include a prostitute, an adulteress, a twice-widowed woman who imitates a harlot to seduce her father-in-law, a barren heathen (also widowed), and an unmarried teenager who becomes a revolutionary. As I prepared the study, then taught the class, I continually asked God “Why these women?”
Women are typically ignored in biblical genealogies. The records followed fathers and sons, though primarily just the firstborn son. Women and daughters were obviously necessary to continue the line, but they weren’t considered important. Women didn’t make history; men did. These five women, however, did make history — even in the eyes of the men who wrote history.
The same question — Why them? — haunted me through our reading of Genesis. Why these people listed in this way? Why did this blessing pass from this person to this one? Who was significant enough to be remembered and why?
I learned (yet again and in a new way) that God rarely follows man’s rules of importance. Seldom was the firstborn blessed above all the rest. Look at Israel’s sons.
Rueben was the firstborn, but he was also the one who slept with his father’s concubine, the mother of two of his brothers. His own father cursed him as a result.
Joseph, the righteous eleventh son, was the one with prophetic dreams who saved his family and indeed the whole nation of Egypt. He seems like the front runner in God’s eyes, but even He was overlooked for the Messianic promise.
Who became the ancestor of Christ? Judah! Judah, the third son, was the one who initiated the sale of Joseph into slavery. He also married a Canaanite woman, raised three evil sons, failed to keep his promises the the widow of his sons, then took solace in a prostitute after his wife’s death. Well, he thought she was a prostitute until the daughter-in-law he rejected and condemned to poverty became obviously pregnant. This is the man God chose as the heir of the promise. This is the man God chose to honor as part of the lineage of the Messiah.
Why? I don’t know.
What I do know is that God has a plan and we’re all part of it. Israel, Rueben, Joseph, Judah … the firstborns and the first chosens, the blessed and the Bathshebas. The faithful ones waiting expectantly and the spoiled rotten ones who spit in the face of grace. We all have our place.
Genesis reminded me of 1 Corinthians 12. Here is how The Message phrases verses 13-18:
“You can easily enough see how this kind of thing works by looking no further than your own body. Your body has many parts—limbs, organs, cells—but no matter how many parts you can name, you’re still one body. It’s exactly the same with Christ. By means of his one Spirit, we all said good-bye to our partial and piecemeal lives. We each used to independently call our own shots, but then we entered into a large and integrated life in which he has the final say in everything. (This is what we proclaimed in word and action when we were baptized.) Each of us is now a part of his resurrection body, refreshed and sustained at one fountain—his Spirit—where we all come to drink. The old labels we once used to identify ourselves—labels like Jew or Greek, slave or free—are no longer useful. We need something larger, more comprehensive.
“I want you to think about how all this makes you more significant, not less. A body isn’t just a single part blown up into something huge. It’s all the different-but-similar parts arranged and functioning together. If Foot said, “I’m not elegant like Hand, embellished with rings; I guess I don’t belong to this body,” would that make it so? If Ear said, “I’m not beautiful like Eye, limpid and expressive; I don’t deserve a place on the head,” would you want to remove it from the body? If the body was all eye, how could it hear? If all ear, how could it smell? As it is, we see that God has carefully placed each part of the body right where he wanted it.”
Joseph saved the country, but he was no greater than Israel or Judah or Aaron. Tamar seduced her father-in-law, but this makes her no less important than Sarah or Rachel or Ruth.
The same is true for us today. I may write and teach Bible classes, but that makes me no more important than my neighbor. A missionary in Africa is no less in need of grace than the homeless man drinking in the ghetto of San Francisco. We all have our parts to play. If we heed God, we’ll all be great in the end because together we make God glorified. He’s the star of the show. None of the rest matters.
If you missed Whimzie’s post last week on Genesis, you have to go check it out. Great thoughts over there!
Genesis behind us, we’re now in Exodus, about to start Leviticus. We haven’t lost anyone – have we?
I saw someone this week who said she didn’t want to talk to me because she knew she was behind in her reading. Please don’t avoid me!! I’m still a bit behind, too, but — you know what? I’m okay with that. This year will have ups and downs, busy times and free times. Lately I seem to have a lot of busy, crazy, stressful times. When things calm down, I’ll catch up. In the meantime, I keep reading, keep trying, keep working toward our goal. That’s all you need to do, too. We can do it!
So, howya doin?
Psalm 22
From the four corners of the earth people are coming to their senses, are running back to God.
Long-lost families are falling on their faces before Him.
God has taken charge; from now on he has the last word.
All the power-mongers are before him
– worshiping!
All the poor and powerless, too
– worshiping!
Along with those who never got it together
– worshiping!
Our children and their children will get in on this
As the word is passed along from parent to child.
Babies not yet conceived will hear the good news
– that God does what he says.
quoted from Psalm 22: 27–31 (The Message)
Can you imagine?? How absolutely awesome would that be? It can be. It will be. It starts today with us.
Read with Me: January Milestones
Twenty-nine days ago we kicked off a challenge: read the entire Bible in 2010. It started with a link and soon grew to three friends. Before we knew it we have more than 35 people participating from all around the country! GOD IS GOOD. Now, we’re at the end of the first month. Let’s check our milestones.
If you’re using the Piper recommended Discipleship Journal reading schedule, you could have finished January’s assignments early this week! If, like me, you’ve used your grace days, you may have a little more to go. And if you’re using a different schedule, you could be anywhere!
So, HOWYA DOIN? Is everyone still with us?
Today I would love to have some real discussion about our journeys so far. What are you learning? What characters or segments of Scripture have fascinated, surprised or convicted you? If you have a blog, please post over there then link up here. If you don’t, take over the comments section below.
Penny was so excited to weigh-in, she commented on last week’s post before I could get on here this morning! Way to go, Penny!! Here is what she said:
“I have really enjoyed this week. I am actually ahead with both Genesis and Psalms and current in Mathew and Acts. What struck me most this week was how when Jacob was blessing his sons before he died, Genesis 49 said,”this is what their father said to them when he blessed them, giving each the blessing appropriate to him. I have two daughters, one of whom struggles greatly with “fairness”. I need to remember that “What is appropriate” to each of them is often better than fair or equal.”
Personally, I’ve had a lot of thoughts about genealogies and favoritism. Last summer I taught a class that included the life of Tamar. I love Tamar. I named my laptop after her. I think this reading through, however, has tied a lot of loose strings between the significance of Tamar, Dinah, Bilhah and other women often overlooked with the prominent stories of Joseph, Jacob, Rueben, Judah and even, by extension, Christ. The seemingly insignificant details are not useless. Rather, they hold vast implications when considered equally with the whole.
More to come on these thoughts. They’re still brewing.
In the meantime, I want to say I’ve really enjoyed this. I’ve had my bad days and I am still behind. I’m still trying to find a consistent reading groove that works with this schedule. But I have completely finished Genesis and am nearly finished with my January readings in Matthew and Psalms. (I’m pretty behind in Acts. I’ve had trouble reading that the same time as Matthew since it involves some of the same people and not the same timeline.) I am determined to be all caught up before February begins.
Your turn!
Delight!
Well, my laundry intermission has come to a close. We leave for the airport in less than four hours. I am super excited, but also a little nervous and obsessed with my check list. Did I do everything I needed to do? Have I signed enough papers to take care of the kids now and in the event of a crisis? Have I packed all that I’ll want with me? Do I have enough books and handbags? Is my house clean enough for those who will be using it in my absence?
Last night while straightening the playroom I faced an empty chalkboard. Of course I had to fill it, but with what? As I continued my task, now focused on the books scattered across the floor, one cover flipped open. It was an alphabet memory verse boardbook. The flopped-open page read:
“Delight yourself in the Lord. — Psalm 37:4″
That’s exactly what the chalkboard needed to say.
Deep cleansing breath. Sure, I have a ton to do and a lot I want to do, but none of it matters when compared to the Lord. Am I delighting in Him or am I trying to find my delight in other things? Like coffee or a clean house or an unexpected romantic tryst? (Isn’t “tryst” a fun word? It was in the advertisement for the hotel where we’ll be staying!) To what do I look for peace and joy? If not in God, then I’m going to miss the boat.
And if I don’t get off this computer, I’m going to miss my plane. I’ll be traveling without my laptop, which will likely feel like living without my right arm, so I’ll be offline until the end of next week. Until then …
Psalm 37
“Trust in the LORD and do good.
Then you will live in the land and enjoy its food.
Find your delight in the LORD.
Then He will give you everything your heart really wants.
Commit your life to the LORD.
Here is what He will do if you trust in Him.
He will make your godly ways shine like the dawn.
He will make your honest life shine like the sun at noon.
Be still. Be patient. Wait for the LORD to act.“
Psalm 37:3–7a (NIRV)
Click here to read the full chapter. You can also compare versions and translations.
What’s your answer?
Last night I dreamed of a trip to the store. Exciting, I know, but wait. It was Wal-mart or Target or some likewise everything-you-want-you-can-get-here store. While browsing the aisles, two gorgeous women approached me. As I envied their red hair and olive skin, their green eyes pleaded with me. Thick Eastern European accents questioned: “Tell us about the day you met God.”
I smiled. “What do you mean?”
“The day you met God. We want to know about it.”
“How do you know I know God? Why are you asking me this?” I glanced around the store nervously, suspiciously.
“Please. Tell us about that day. We heard you talking and we want to know the story.”
As I stood there silent, wondering what I might have said to Rick and the kids (who were now two aisles away) that would have given these women initiative to approach me, the tall enquirers disappeared. In their place stood a shorter, plumper, average-mom looking woman.
“They’re gone,” she said.
“Where did they go? Why are they asking me this? What did I say?”
“Does it matter?” Then she faded away before me, and the two seeking women returned, this time with children of their own, just as beautiful as they.
I started my rehearsed testimony. “My mom believed in God and dragged me to church …”
The women weren’t listening. One child needed a new diaper while another pulled his mother’s hair. I tried to help them find the right light switch for the shelves which had by now transformed into a large wooden countertop and hutch. The women chatted, the children continued being children, and I, just before waking, realized my opportunity had passed.
“But set Christ apart as Lord in your hearts and always be ready to give an answer to anyone who asks about the hope you possess.” 1 Peter 3:15 (NET)
One of our assignments in college (remember I attended a Bible university) was to write three versions of our testimony, each a different length for a different time: 5 minutes, 2 minutes and 1 minute. You can always make your “answer” longer, but making it shorter on the spot can be difficult, to say the least. Somehow between that class (ten years ago) and now, I’ve forgotten the importance of brevity. I know it was just a dream, but what if it had been real? I never got to the point! Worse, I stalled and questioned and hesitated. How much clearer could the question have been? “Tell us about the day you met God.” Really? I didn’t know what they wanted? And who cares why they asked; I should have had an answer ready.
I think believers sometimes focus more on verse 16 than 15. The verse immediately after this one (the one quoted above) tells us how to give the answer: with respect and courtesy, gentleness and reverence. How do these civil instructions encourage silence? Somehow, I fear, we’ve translated respect into silence. We don’t want to offend, so we keep our answers to ourselves. We don’t want to scare them off, so we nod our head and say a silent prayer that one day they’ll encounter the truth.
Here’s the ticket, people: WE HAVE THE TRUTH. It’s our job to share it.
Are you ready? Do you know the answer? Do you share it when asked?
Give me less
If you could only ask two things of God, what would you request? Any two things in all the world and imagination. And, no, you can’t ask for more wishes. What would you choose?
I’ve requested many things from God. A bigger house, so that I can exercise the gift of hospitality properly. A more organized mind, so that I can manage my household more efficiently. The perfect opportunities, so that I may bring glory to His name most profoundly. These requests may be fine and good, but they’re based on my finite understanding. Furthermore, they hint of pride.
Oh, yes, I already have the gift of hospitality and, yes, yes, I want what I deem efficient and proper. If only God would give me the right opportunities, then I could honor Him rightly. Why does He delay in provision, preventing me from using my magnificent abilities??
I read Proverbs 30 this morning. The first nine verses include a discussion between a skeptic and a believer. Check it out. (Normally, I don’t like quoting The Message, but I really like the way Peterson paraphrased this passage. For further study, be sure to check out actual translations of Scripture.)
The skeptic swore, “There is no God! No God!—I can do anything I want! I’m more animal than human; so-called human intelligence escapes me. I flunked ‘wisdom.’ I see no evidence of a holy God. Has anyone ever seen Anyone climb into Heaven and take charge? Grab the winds and control them? Gather the rains in his bucket? Stake out the ends of the earth?Just tell me his name, tell me the names of his sons. Come on now—tell me!”
The believer replied, “Every promise of God proves true; he protects everyone who runs to him for help. So don’t second-guess him; he might take you to task and show up your lies.”
And then he prayed, “God, I’m asking for two things before I die; don’t refuse me — Banish lies from my lips and liars from my presence. Give me enough food to live on, neither too much nor too little.
If I’m too full, I might get independent, saying, ‘God? Who needs him?’
If I’m poor, I might steal and dishonor the name of my God.”
What two things did the believer ask? (1) Set me in the center of truth and (2) give me just what I need for today, no more, no less.
As consumers, especially in America, we believe we always need more. We need more food, more comfort, more clothes, more technology, more coffee, more sex, more friends, more entertainment … more of everything. But in acquiring all of this, are we seeking to be free of God? Are we seeking independence from our Creator and Sustainer?
God likes reversing human logic. The last shall be first and the first shall be last. The servant shall be greatest of all. The weak shall be strong and the strong made weak. Love your enemies.
Here’s another one, my prayer for today: Give me less that I might need You more.
