May 14 ~ Deuteronomy 31:6
"Be strong. Take courage. Don't be intimidated. Don't give them a second thought because God, your God, is striding ahead of you. He's right there with you. He won't let you down; he won't leave you."
(Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson.Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved. For copies of The Message call (800) 366-7788.)
We are in the season of graduations. Some have just graduated from college, while others will be walking across the stage to receive a high school diploma very shortly. Throughout the country, speakers are preparing words of wisdom to impart to the graduates. “Follow your dreams” ~ “work hard” ~ “believe in yourself” – and yes, “stay strong!” will be among the phrases used to inspire the masses. But no advice given could be any more important than this verse in Deuteronomy. If every graduate – and every one of us – would remember that God is striding ahead of us and will not leave us or let us down, we would have more courage. We would be less intimidated. We wouldn’t give those who taunt, ridicule and challenge us a second thought!
So this is my “graduation speech” – courtesy of Deuteronomy (probably authored by Joshua)… Be strong. Take courage. Don’t be intimidated. God - your God - is striding ahead of you. He’s right there with you – He won’t let you down – He won’t leave you. So you can handle anything. Don’t give your challengers – and challenges – a second thought! And, oh yeah… follow your dreams, work hard, and believe in yourself!
©2009 Debbie Robus
-----------------------------------------------------------
May 13 ~ Revelation 3:8
"I see what you've done. Now see what I've done. I've opened a door before you that no one can slam shut. You don't have much strength, I know that; you used what you had to keep my Word. You didn't deny me when times were rough."
(Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson.Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved. For copies of The Message call (800) 366-7788.)
As I write this devotional, my new great nephew is trying to come into this world. New life is so fragile… and weak. Babies need constant care and nurturing and depend on others for EVERYTHING – even help being born! We are equally weak in the sight of God. But HE nurtures us… HE takes care of everything for us.
God has opened a door before each of us that NO ONE can slam shut! Just as the whole world awaits all new babies, the Kingdom of Heaven awaits us as children of God. This is truly such wonderful news. I know how much we are going to love our new great nephew… how we are going to take every opportunity to nurture and spoil him. And that’s just what God is waiting to do for us! I’m open to being nurtured and spoiled… aren’t you?! I will not deny my Heavenly Father… there is too much at stake! What about you?
©2009 Debbie Robus
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
May 12 ~ Isaiah 30:15
God, the Master, The Holy of Israel,
has this solemn counsel:
"Your salvation requires you to turn back to me
and stop your silly efforts to save yourselves.
Your strength will come from settling down
in complete dependence on me—
The very thing
you've been unwilling to do.
(Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson.Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved. For copies of The Message call (800) 366-7788.)
I recently read a devotional by Oswald Chambers in his book, My Utmost for His Highest, in which he discussed much the same idea that is presented in this scripture passage. I call it the “I want to drive the car,” syndrome! Chambers says that we often block God’s answers to our prayers because of HOW we pray. He says we don’t ask God to use HIS wisdom and power to change things or direct the paths of ourselves and others. Instead we say things like, “God, if you will just cure Bob,” or “God, Sue really needs to get that job.” Do we think God doesn’t already know the answers to these things? Chambers says our arrogance and thinking we know how God ought to do things often blocks His answers – or at the very least delays them. These types of prayers are insulting to God!
I don’t know if I would go that far, but it did make me stop and think that we really do ask God to do things for us and others – often with the very best heart and great intentions – but they are just that… OUR intentions! We pray “if only God will only heal Mary of this disease” (when God might be planning to use Mary to witness to medical staff while she is being treated), but we should ask Him to care for Mary according to HIS will and timing. We pray for God to help us to grow deeper in love with Sam or Jane, when we should ask God to send the one He has prepared for us, regardless of who it is – or WHEN it happens.
In other words, we need to turn around and hand “the keys” to God and say, “I’m done driving… I cause a wreck every time. I’m ready to sit back and relax and let YOU drive.” This is not becoming lazy as a Christian… this is real maturity… asking God to control everything according to HIS will and HIS timing. It truly is the very thing we’ve been unwilling to do, but it is the only way that our relationship with God will work – and flourish. I so want that… don’t you? I’m ready to hand in “the keys,” settle down, and surrender in complete dependence to Him. So I ask you, who is driving your “car?” Are you ready and willing to hand over the “keys?”
©2009 Debbie Robus
---------------------------------------------------------------
May 11 ~ Proverbs 24:5-6
It's better to be wise than strong;
intelligence outranks muscle any day.
Strategic planning is the key to warfare;
to win, you need a lot of good counsel.
(Scripture from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson.Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved. For copies of The Message call (800) 366-7788.)
With all of the rain we have had lately, I know several people who are literally ankle-to-knee deep in water. And they are scrambling for wisdom and creative solutions to prevent the additional rains that are forecasted from flooding their homes and businesses. As my mother explained her flooded basement, “It’s coming in faster than we can vacuum it up and pour it back out!”
Over the weekend, I stopped in to see some friends whose business had flooded. As we carried out muddy, soggy containers that housed hundreds, if not thousands of dollars in inventory, I looked at their faces and saw a wide range of emotions there – shock, frustration, confusion, concern, and downright weariness. You have to think that after so many days and weeks of this ordeal, they feel as if they are under attack. Talk about Spiritual warfare!
Where do we turn when disaster strikes? If you need a lot of good counsel for these situations, where do you get it? When a tornado blows away your house and belongings, or the wind brings fire to your home almost faster than you can run from it (as happened recently in California), where do you find answers?
The first step is prayer and seeking the word – and will – of God… even in a frustrating, disastrous situation. Yes, when we know a disaster is coming, we can plan ahead to some degree - take shelter, set things on higher ground, gather valuable belongings and remove them. But sometimes things happen anyway. How do we cope then? We turn to God.
As I told my friends and family members who were flooded, “It really will be okay.” The key will be letting God show them how to proceed… seeking His wisdom in determining the next steps. If those who were burned out in California let God show them where to turn next, they will make the right choices. If people who lost everything in a tornado turn to God for answers and comfort, a year from now they will look back and see how He numbered their steps. If those who are fighting the raging flood waters now will keep in close contact with God, they will come out on top when the dry days of summer come around.
And for those of us who face our own “disasters” and challenges, the counsel is the same… and so is the Counselor. GOD is the key to overcoming Spiritual warfare - and winning. Be sure you spend plenty of time with HIM, and everything truly will be okay. And when the sun does shine again, be sure to give Him some mighty praise!
©2009 Debbie Robus
-------------------------------------------------------------------
May 10 ~ Nehemiah 8:10
He continued, "Go home and prepare a feast, holiday food and drink; and share it with those who don't have anything: This day is holy to God. Don't feel bad. The joy of God is your strength!"
(Scripture from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson.Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved. For copies of The Message call (800) 366-7788.)
Someone posted on Facebook recently, “NEGATIVE people stink! Try to see the good in everything!” I don’t know what was going on to provoke this post, but the point has some merit – especially for Christians. God doesn’t want grumpy, unhappy, negative believers (isn’t this an oxymoron?) walking around and interacting with others. God’s message – His laws – His will should bring us all joy. Being a Christian should be reason to celebrate… every single day, regardless of our circumstances.
Let me give you an example. My dad passed away at a hospital in Little Rock on a Saturday night. It was well into the hours of Sunday morning when we arrived back at my parents’ house. I didn’t sleep much and was up early the next morning. And honestly, I wanted to go to church! Don’t get me wrong… I was sad – heartbroken – but I was also filled with joy. My dad was in heaven! And I wanted to be with my church family and worship God with them.
In the end, people started coming to my parents’ house, and I was needed for other things. So I did not go to church that day. But the joy of God was my strength – then and now – as I dealt with the immediate grief of losing my dad, and even now, over ten years later. When struggles, inconveniences, and even things that are downright difficult come my way, I think of God and all He does for us, and I celebrate His love for me. I don’t have time to be sad or negative… the joy of God is my strength. I pray that you can say the same. If the joy of the Lord is our strength, how can we possibly feel bad?
©2009 Debbie Robus
----------------------------------------------------------
May 9 ~ 2 Samuel 22:33
Is there any god like God?
Are we not at bedrock?
Is not this the God who armed me well,
then aimed me in the right direction?
(Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson.Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved. For copies of The Message call (800) 366-7788.)
Okay, this may seem silly, but do you remember that little game we used to play at birthday parties… “Pin the Tail On the Donkey?” Do you remember how someone would blindfold you, spin you around, then point you in the direction of the donkey and send you off to pin your “tail?” This is what God does for us all the time. He prepares us… spins us around, so to speak… and then points us in the right direction.
In the game, the “spin” is to disorient us so that we let go of all of our sense of direction and rely on the “spinner” to point us toward the donkey. In our Spiritual life, God does much the same. He wants us to let go of our sins, our old thoughts and ways of doing things, and trust Him to show us a new direction. Sometimes in the game, we are headed in the right direction, but we still manage to pin the tail on the wall and not on the donkey. Sometimes with God, He shows us how to live and guides us, but we choose to move away.
The bottom line is that God is solid as a rock… and so is His direction and plan for our lives. When He shows us the way, we can be assured we are not being steered in the wrong direction. When He prepares us for a life of faith and service and “spins” us away from our sinful past, we need to trust Him. He will never mislead us. There is no other god like our God! So put on your blindfold and get ready to spin!
©2009 Debbie Robus
------------------------------------------------------------
May 8 ~ 1 Samuel 2:6-10
God brings death and God brings life,
brings down to the grave and raises up.
God brings poverty and God brings wealth;
he lowers, he also lifts up.
He puts poor people on their feet again;
he rekindles burned-out lives with fresh hope,
Restoring dignity and respect to their lives—
a place in the sun!
For the very structures of earth are God's;
he has laid out his operations on a firm foundation.
He protectively cares for his faithful friends, step by step,
but leaves the wicked to stumble in the dark.
No one makes it in this life by sheer muscle!
God's enemies will be blasted out of the sky,
crashed in a heap and burned.
God will set things right all over the earth,
he'll give strength to his king,
he'll set his anointed on top of the world!
(Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson.Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved. For copies of The Message call (800) 366-7788.)
Do you remember when you were choosing sides for a team, and there were people who didn’t have a lot of skill or ability – or strength – but they were team players? Do you remember thinking, “Why did he/she get chosen when there were others who were better players?” No one makes it in this life by sheer muscle! Attitude often trumps skill and muscle. Often, a true “team player” can be worth three strong/skilled ones.
As Christians, we all come to God with individual strengths and weaknesses, but God can use us all. If we are willing to serve, He can do mighty things with even our tiniest effort. Have you ever heard the saying, “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade?” This is a constant occurrence for Christians, because Satan is going to come at us full force with every “lemon” in the book. But through God, we can “make lemonade.” God can take even the worst situation – the most horrible player on the team – and HE can turn things around.
How is your attitude? What sort of “team player” are you? Are you trusting God to take your “lemons” and “make lemonade?” Are you living in such a way that He is able to work in and through you? Are you faithful and confident, or are you wallowing in your weaknesses? Remember, with God, ALL things are possible. I don’t know about you, but I want this! I want to walk in the confidence that God will blast Satan and his agents and lift me above the rubble. I want a place in the sun with Him! I hope you want that, too. I hope that you are living in faith and confidence… and that your attitude is truly “I can do ALL things with Christ Jesus, Who is my strength.” He is… He can… He will… are you ready?
©2009 Debbie Robus
No comments:
Post a Comment