Child of Destiny

Read Isaiah 8:13-14

At first glance, this passage can be a little intimidating. "The Lord Almighty is the One you are to regard as holy; He is the One you are to fear; He is the One you are to dread. He will be a holy place; for both Israel and Judah, He will be a stone that causes people to stumble and a rock that makes them fall. And for the people of Jerusalem He will be a trap and a snare."

Fear and dread don’t seem like words I'd use to describe God. Why would He cause people to stumble and fall? I typically don't think of Him this way, but it actually can be comforting.

A trap and a snare are comforting? Yes, we want to stumble and fall. We want God to trap and ensnare us when we're headed in the wrong direction. God is trying to keep us from evil and lead us to His goodness. He doesn’t want his people to be like those who follow the path leading to darkness. He doesn’t want us to be broken. He wants us to be whole in Him because He is our holy place.

QUESTIONS:

1. What path are you on? Where is it leading?

2. When you’re headed the wrong way, do you cry out to God and ask him to stop you in your tracks?

PRAYER:

Please, God, lay Your strong hand upon me and lead me in the right direction. When I go astray, grab me and set me back.

Jennifer Jerrome

Comfort Food and Living Water

I love fall. That is one of the things I miss most about living in Florida.  We don’t get seasons here and I miss fall the most. In the Midwest, fall has a special smell.  The leaves as they change colors look amazing and the crisp fall air is refreshing to breath in.

I also like foods that come back in season.  Chili, pumpkin pie, pot roast and so many other foods that have been categorized as “comfort foods”.  I would call fall as my “comfort season”.

We are always looking for things that give us comfort or satisfaction.  Whether it’s the people who surround us, the house we live in, or the job we have we long for satisfaction. 

In today’s scripture, Jesus encounters a Samaritan woman gathering water from the well.  Jesus knows immediately that this woman has been seeking satisfaction with men.  He offers her living water, ultimately though he is offering her himself.  He is saying that if she looked to him for satisfaction she would not have to look any place else.

Jesus message is the same today. We try to find satisfaction in so many things when Jesus is the only thing that can satisfy.  I am not talking about salvation. Christians can be totally dissatisfied if they accept Christ as their Savior and then distrust him for everything else in life.

Christ came that we might have life and have it to the full, but if we don’t turn to him for our satisfaction we lose out.  So drink in the living water daily.  Consume scriptures teaching of Jesus and talk to him whenever you feel the need to be satisfied. He will not disappoint.

Read today's passage here John 4:4-26

And we blame Him?

Again I saw all the oppressions that are done under the sun.  And behold, the tears of the oppressed, and they had no one to comfort them!  On the side of their oppressors there was power, and there was no one to comfort them.  Ecclesiastes 4:1

The world is full of pain, injustice and heartache.  “Bad things happen to good people.”  And we point our fingers at God and ask, “Why?”

But there are far more appropriate questions that need to be answered  And we are the ones who need to answer them, not God.

Why do I keep or spend everything I have, and then blame God for the poor?

Why do I blame God for the conduct of people who rebel against him and his will?
Why doesn’t God force me to set aside my will and obey his will, which is to love him and to love my neighbor by my actions?
If I don't like the thought of God forcing me to love and obey him, why do I blame him for not forcing others to do the same?
Why do I blame God for wrongs, even as others heed his call to address them with justice?
If God created people to know only good and told us to refrain from knowing evil, why do we blame him for man’s disobedience that ushered evil into a good creation in the first place?
Why does God allow a sinful me to shake my fist at a holy him?
And why am I so angry at a God who cannot possibly exist because of the evil in the world?

But I digress.  It seems we were concerned about the oppressed.  What about them? 

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.”  2 Corinthians 1:3-4

Which leads us to one more question.  What should I do today –  go comfort the hurting, or keep asking God, “Why?”

Hmm.  Now that’s a tough one!

[Click here to see today’s reading in Ecclesiastes 4:1-16.]

Do the next right thing...pray

2 Corinthians 1:3-5
The Message (MSG)

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.  For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. 

This world we live in is fraught with misfortune and unhappiness. We go from one sticky situation to another, time after time. There could be a season of calm, but we know it will not last forever. That is just the way it goes; up and then down. We can experience good days, even a good year, but there will be difficult days ahead, that is fact.

So, where do you turn when you need comfort; when you need someone to help get you out of trouble? Do you have a best friend who knows just what to say and do to help?  Perhaps a parent is ready and willing to bail you out of the next fix you find yourself dealing with. Maybe, you know the best one to turn to is our God.  

Prayer might be the logical answer to every dilemma you face. I know that at one point in my life I came to that realization. There is no other answer but to stop and pray. The scripture selection today speaks to the God of all Comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles. It doesn't refer to the God who makes everything okay again, or the God who pretends it didn't happen.  No, the God of all Comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles.

Turning to God won't make it go away, but it will give peace and comfort.  Time spent in prayer is never wasted time, but the best use of it.  When we are comforted we feel secure and when we feel secure we can think things through.  Prayers will clear our minds and hearts and help us do the next right thing.

2 Corinthians 1:1-11

The God of all Comfort

2 Corinthians 1:3-4 (NIV)

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.      

I have been watching a series on TV I have found very interesting and good distraction in the evening before going to bed.  It is about a family on a cattle farm in Australia.  They have many struggles and lots of hardship, but they pull together as a family.  When it gets too tough for the family to handle alone they reach out to the neighbors who are almost as close as family.

I am in to season three and have become quite entrenched in the characters and their lives (I do this with books too), but last night was different.  As I watched the family move through a major crisis it struck me how typical they are - no faith in God, in fact God was never mentioned in all three seasons that I can recall. I suspect that is true of the most of the world in which we live.

These new friends of mine face every hardship in life without a God who can carry them, who comforts [us] in all our troubles.  This parallel was troubling for me last night. As life does, a major curve ball was thrown at them when death struck suddenly and from nowhere. There was no one to comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. They were on their own.

I turned the TV off at that point but I couldn't turn my mind off.  It was a long time before I was able to get to sleep. This may sound silly to you, getting so involved in a piece of fiction, a television drama, but the writers of all the programs we view, write from life; often from their own life experiences. There are so many lessons for me from that TV program but for today I am made aware of how truly blessed I am to know Jesus and His love and compassion.  

I know, as you probably do too, from personal experience that life will toss us handfuls of hardship and a pocketful of pain which we have to face. If we had to face them alone, without a God who loves and cares deeply, the pain would be unbearable. It is time we Christians remember why we are here, remember the one person who shared Jesus' love with us and do the same for someone else.

2 Corinthians 1

Prayer is Crying -- Knowing God Hears

Psalm 58:11 (NIV)
 Then men will say, "Surely the righteous still are rewarded; surely there is a God who judges the earth."
I often find myself saying, "It's just not fair," when I hear about something one of our politicians is up to.  I ask myself how they got into office in the first place and then I wonder why promises made during a campaign are so soon forgotten.  It is human nature to promise the moon to people when we are after something we want so badly.  I can relate to some extent.  There was a time when I would say anything, promise something I knew I would never deliver on, just to get my own way.

This might be one reason it is so difficult to believe God will deliver on His promises sometimes.  We equate our promises with His and don't expect great things.  But, once we open our hearts to what God really wants for us; once we understand He does not operate as we humans do - He is love and justice, honesty and hope all wrapped up in one gift to mankind.  God's justice will be felt by all of us, but the good news is that His love will also be felt and experienced.

Psalm 59:16-17 (NIV) 
 But I will sing of your strength, in the morning I will sing of your love; for you are my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble. O my Strength, I sing praise to you; you, O God, are my fortress, my loving God. 

Here are the words refuge and a fortress again.  These words frequently are found in Psalms referring to God.  How many times I have sought shelter in God's presence, used the shelter of His wings as a hideout of sorts.  There is comfort and healing found here.  He is our protector and our defender.

Psalm 60:11-12 (NIV)
 Give us aid against the enemy, for the help of man is worthless.
 With God we will gain the victory, and he will trample down our enemies. 

This week let's remember to use God as our hideout when we need to get away from it all.  Find a quiet and cool corner and spend time pondering how mighty is our God.  Give thanks and praise that we can cry out to Him and He hears us.

Psalm 58, 59, 60

1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:11

1 Thessalonians 4:14 (NIV)
  We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. 

This is one of the most comforting verses in the Bible.  When a loved one struggles with illness or a tragic accident takes a life there is such grief, but there is also hope. When my husband's illness was diagnosed as terminal, he and I had numerous conversations around this promise.  We both drew comfort from the fact we may have to say goodbye in this world but we would be reunited again.

You might think these empty words but many Believers who have lost someone will tell you they are mighty big words to them.  One of the reasons to read from our Bible's every day is to grab hold of God's promises and cling to them when times are hurtful and puzzling.  Every day God speaks through His Word.

Just this morning I was reading from Psalm 37 and sensed God's presence.  "Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart.  Commit your way to the LORD; trust in Him and he will do this."

What words spoke to your heart this day?

Read 1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:11

Listen 1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:11

Isaiah 40:1-10

How often in our lives do we look for comfort, do we seek to feel better about the world, especially our little piece of the world?  Is your world falling apart today, do you feel alone or rejected?  Oh, dear friend, this too is part of life, part of growing strong in faith and part of developing a personal testimony God can use.

It is good to know that God doesn't leave us alone during these seasons.  When we look around us we can find people God has placed in our lives who will understand our problems.  We can also gain comfort by reaching out and grabbing hold of God himself.  His Word in this Isaiah text is meant to comfort us and to provide hope for tomorrow.

 A voice of one calling:
“In the wilderness prepare
the way for the LORD;
make straight in the desert
a highway for our God. 
 Every valley shall be raised up,
every mountain and hill made low;
the rough ground shall become level,
the rugged places a plain.
 And the glory of the LORD will be revealed,
and all people will see it together.
For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”

It has been a year since my world began to fall apart, a year since life as I knew it began to change.  If I did not have The Living Hope to reach out for, everything would be much different now.  Because of God and the faith I have in His goodness I can claim the scripture above as mine.  "Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low..."

We are all invited to draw near to God and experience His comfort.

Read the Isaiah 40:1-11 text here.  Listen to the text here.

Comfort My People - Isaiah 40:1-9

Do you hear God calling His people back into a loving relationship with Him? He offers them hope and comfort amid their punishment, suffering, and hopelessness, a consequence of their disobedience.

God speaks tenderly to His people. Isaiah states that they have served their punishment. Their disobedience has been paid for in double. God offers His grace and comfort…a new beginning. (v 1-2)

God takes action by delivering His people from exile. He is preparing the way to show His grace by revealing they will ultimately be saved by Jesus. We read the familiar words of John the Baptist preparing the way for Jesus. (v 3-5)

Verses 6-8 are a reminder of God’s faithfulness. While people pass away, His Word of love, hope, comfort, protection and forgiveness endures forever.

Shout it out…”go up on a high mountain,” to declare the good news to all people to hear. God is powerful, but also gentle with His people. He offers them hope and grace. He is preparing the way to “make straight in the desert a highway for…God.” (v 3b)

Go Tell it on the Mountain! We’ll be singing this favorite song and many others as we celebrate the season of Christ's birth. The Comforter is here! Declare the good news to people around you! It is important that we know, experience, and acknowledge God’s comfort in our own lives. Through our suffering and hardship, in the face of hurts and opposition, we can speak the truth, without fear, of our own experiences with God.

Don’t keep God to yourself, share the peace, joy, and comfort He brings to you!

Read today's text on Biblegateway.