May 9, 2006
"...those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint." (Isaiah 40:31)
When the storms of life bear down on you, are your reactions like an eagle's or like a turkey's? "A turkey and an eagle react differently to the threat of a storm. A turkey reacts by running under the barn, hoping the storm won't come near. On the other hand, an eagle leaves the security of its nest and spreads its wings to ride the air currents of the approaching storm, knowing they will carry it higher in the sky than it could soar on its own. Based on your reactions to the storms of life, which are you? A turkey or an eagle?" (unknown source)
Turkeys really can't fly. Their wings cannot support their considerably great body weight. They are too burdened down to fly. The troubles of this world weigh us down too, don't they? Sometimes they just seem too heavy to bear. We find it so hard to get up and keep going, let alone to fly! I don't want to spend a lot of time on the turkeys because that's not where I want you to be. Let's just say that they spend a lot of time flapping their wings, hiding and hoping for the best. Sometimes we are just flapping our wings when we should be soaring in high places.
The eagle is among the largest and most powerful birds. Their wingspans range from 3 to 8 feet across. They dwell in high places, rocks and cliffs. Eagles can glide at altitudes of over 2500 feet. Without flapping their wings they soar gracefully high in the air and glide great distances. As they ride the winds they appear to be soaring almost effortlessly. They are strong, swift, courageous and have been seen to be soaring almost motionless in hurricane force winds. I have heard it said that when there is a storm, the eagle flies above it. The more turbulent the winds, the greater is the lifting power for the eagle to fly higher. The higher he flies, the bigger is his view. He is at a level that no one else is at. The winds allow him to fly faster and stay in flight longer.
Our verse tells us that if we hope in the Lord we can soar on wings like those eagles. I'd like to call one wing "surrender" and the other one "trust". When we surrender, we yield to the power, control or possession of another, in this case, God. It means to give up completely, to give oneself up. When we trust we place confidence in God. We depend on Him and are confident in Him. We rely on Him, expect from Him and believe Him. If we believe that He is sovereign over all and that He is all-powerful and that His Word is truth, then we need never fear that our problems and difficulties are too much for Him to handle. If we pray and wait with trust upon Him we will receive all that we need.
We need to allow the storms of our lives to lift us up, not drag us down. Just like the eagle, if we "go with the flow", so to speak, the winds of adversity will bring us higher. No trial should ever be wasted in worry, anxiety, doubt or fear. Hard times should always be seen as an opportunity to soar. To be uplifted emotionally and spiritually. To drive us closer to our God. I've had many pity parties in my life and you know what? No one ever came. I have vowed to not waste the time that I'm spending in the trials of life another day. I ask.."What can I learn? What is God trying to teach me? How can I grow in the middle of this?" I want to come out of the storm more mature, more complete, and with more wholeness in my life than when I entered it. And the more turbulent my storm, the higher I want to fly.
We cannot even try to fathom God's wisdom in directing the courses of our lives. But if we ride those winds with prayer, surrender, and trust we will soar. The rest of the verse tells us that we won't even grow weary or tired and we'll never give up and faint. God will give us the stamina and strength that we need to endure the storm. And He gives in great measure. We will progress, grow and come out better for having experienced the storm. I believe that this is what it's like when the eagle flies above the storm. He is higher than anyone else and he sees things from a bigger view. When we stay inside ourselves and our own misery and never look to God, we will never desire to grow in the storm and He will never let us see things from His perspective. God isn't interested so much in our comfort as He is in our growth. And He will use any means possible to make us more like Him. I want God's eye-view.
Are you hiding today? Running under the barn and hoping that the storm will go away? How fast are your wings called "fear" and "worry" flapping? Are you a turkey? Or are you soaring like the eagle? Graceful, dwelling in high places above the storm, effortlessly riding the winds of adversity? Remember, the more turbulent the winds, the higher we will fly. Spread your wings of surrender and trust and ride the wind and the storm. And all the while, know that underneath you are the everlasting arms of God.
Your fellow eagle,
Donna SchultzSavemom@aol.com
I would like to share some good news with you. I was picked up as a staff writer for a web-zine beginning this month. You can see my work as well as a lot of other great inspirational material by visiting http://handmaidens.org/506. My contribution is on the Christian page. I am giving God the glory for allowing me to reach even more folks with my writing.
Tuesday, May 09, 2006
Tuesday, May 02, 2006
#44 "What Are You Waiting For?"
May 2, 2006
"Go down ahead of me to Gilgal. I will surely come down to you to sacrifice burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, but you must wait seven days until I come to you and tell you what you are to do." (1Samuel 10:8) "What have you done?" asked Samuel. Saul replied, 'When I saw that the men were scattering, and that you did not come at the set time, and that the Philistines were assembling at Micmash, I thought, 'Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not sought the Lord's favor.' So I felt compelled to offer the burnt offering." (1 Samuel 13: 11-12)
How good are you at waiting? It's kind of difficult in these days of instant everything. We eat fast food and cook at home in a microwave. We get fast cash out of ATM machines. Express lines at the grocery store allow us to get in and out...fast. We drive fast, eat fast, and we expect those who serve us in stores, restaurants, banks and the like to wait on us...fast. We are so accustomed to an instant society that it has become increasingly difficult for us to wait for anything. Especially God.
Saul had the same problem. Samuel had expressly told him to wait for him when he arrived at Gilgal. The Bible says that the Philistines had chariots and soldiers as "numerous as sand on the seashore" (1 Samuel 13: 5) and they pushed the Israelite troops eastward all the way to Gilgal. The Philistines were assembling against Israel and they were in a dire situation. Some hid. Some fled. All the troops were filled with fear. On the seventh day, when Samuel was due to arrive, Saul couldn't wait any longer and he made the community sacrifice which was strictly a priestly duty. What he did was unlawful. (Leviticus 6: 8-13) He also disobeyed the Prophet of the Lord by not waiting. "Just as he finished making the offering, Samuel arrived." (1 Samuel 13: 10). I suspect that it was still the seventh day, just later in the day. Perhaps not as fast as Saul would have liked. He took matters into his own hands and it cost him his kingdom in the end. (1 Samuel 13: 14)
In verses 11 and 12 above you can almost sense Saul's frantic state of mind. (Deep breath) "When I saw that the men were scattering", (Gasp) "and that you didn't come at the set time", (sigh) "and that the Philistines were assembling at Micmash", (wiping sweat from his brow) "I thought, 'Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not sought the Lord's favor.' (Another deep breath...) "So I felt compelled to offer the burnt offering." Wild eyes, fear-filled words. Also a hint of blame on Samuel for not coming quickly enough.
"Waiting" is staying in place in expectation. It is remaining stationary in readiness. The history of the word puts it akin to "watching". I believe there is action and result inherent in the word "waiting". It is not a useless action. It is expectant and hopeful. Something is at the end of the waiting. I also believe that it is very important how we wait. Are we waiting while we murmur, grumble and complain? Or are we waiting joyfully, with great expectation and a good attitude, knowing that God is in control? Ah, there's the key. Do you believe that God is in control of your situation? Do you believe that you will see His answer manifested in your life? Do you REALLY believe it? If not, fear, blame and disobedience will follow just like it did in Saul's life. And you may miss your biggest blessing. What blessings have we possibly missed because we just couldn't wait on God? (see 1 Samuel 13: 13)
Psalm 27 says, "Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord." Sounds like a command to me. Again in Psalm 37 we read, "Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him." See, it does matter how we wait. The Bible says to wait patiently. Isaiah 40: 31 says, "they that wait upon the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings as eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint." Just as God's ways and thoughts are higher than ours (Isaiah 55: 9), His timing is not our timing. I have heard it said that God's timing is perfect and that He is never late. I must admit that I have, at times, thought that God was really, really late in coming to my rescue. But you know what? It always, and I mean always, worked out in the end, in His perfect timing. Things never worked when I took matters into my own hands and had to reap the consequences of my impatience. If you haven't learned this lesson for yourself, take it from someone who has been there.
Don't doubt God's goodness. Remember what He has brought you through in the past. Use that memory to boost your faith that He will bring you through now. He is the same God that parted your Red Sea last year and let you walk out of bondage. He is the same God who collapsed the walls of your personal Jericho. But remember that you may have to march around the walls a few times. He releases prisoners. He sets the captives free. He fights for those who are His own. He is for you, never against you. How do I know that? His Word tells me so. He binds the broken hearted and gives you beauty for ashes. He restores the years that the locusts have eaten and gives you a double portion for your former shame. Don't lose heart, my friend. He knows. He sees. He cares. He loves you. There is more to your problem than you can see. But He's got it under control. Trust Him. Wait for Him. Who knows? He could be coming, just around the corner, today!
Still waiting,
Donna Schultz
If you would like to be added to the weekly e-mail of Tuesday's with Jesus, please e-mail Savemom@aol.com
"Go down ahead of me to Gilgal. I will surely come down to you to sacrifice burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, but you must wait seven days until I come to you and tell you what you are to do." (1Samuel 10:8) "What have you done?" asked Samuel. Saul replied, 'When I saw that the men were scattering, and that you did not come at the set time, and that the Philistines were assembling at Micmash, I thought, 'Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not sought the Lord's favor.' So I felt compelled to offer the burnt offering." (1 Samuel 13: 11-12)
How good are you at waiting? It's kind of difficult in these days of instant everything. We eat fast food and cook at home in a microwave. We get fast cash out of ATM machines. Express lines at the grocery store allow us to get in and out...fast. We drive fast, eat fast, and we expect those who serve us in stores, restaurants, banks and the like to wait on us...fast. We are so accustomed to an instant society that it has become increasingly difficult for us to wait for anything. Especially God.
Saul had the same problem. Samuel had expressly told him to wait for him when he arrived at Gilgal. The Bible says that the Philistines had chariots and soldiers as "numerous as sand on the seashore" (1 Samuel 13: 5) and they pushed the Israelite troops eastward all the way to Gilgal. The Philistines were assembling against Israel and they were in a dire situation. Some hid. Some fled. All the troops were filled with fear. On the seventh day, when Samuel was due to arrive, Saul couldn't wait any longer and he made the community sacrifice which was strictly a priestly duty. What he did was unlawful. (Leviticus 6: 8-13) He also disobeyed the Prophet of the Lord by not waiting. "Just as he finished making the offering, Samuel arrived." (1 Samuel 13: 10). I suspect that it was still the seventh day, just later in the day. Perhaps not as fast as Saul would have liked. He took matters into his own hands and it cost him his kingdom in the end. (1 Samuel 13: 14)
In verses 11 and 12 above you can almost sense Saul's frantic state of mind. (Deep breath) "When I saw that the men were scattering", (Gasp) "and that you didn't come at the set time", (sigh) "and that the Philistines were assembling at Micmash", (wiping sweat from his brow) "I thought, 'Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not sought the Lord's favor.' (Another deep breath...) "So I felt compelled to offer the burnt offering." Wild eyes, fear-filled words. Also a hint of blame on Samuel for not coming quickly enough.
"Waiting" is staying in place in expectation. It is remaining stationary in readiness. The history of the word puts it akin to "watching". I believe there is action and result inherent in the word "waiting". It is not a useless action. It is expectant and hopeful. Something is at the end of the waiting. I also believe that it is very important how we wait. Are we waiting while we murmur, grumble and complain? Or are we waiting joyfully, with great expectation and a good attitude, knowing that God is in control? Ah, there's the key. Do you believe that God is in control of your situation? Do you believe that you will see His answer manifested in your life? Do you REALLY believe it? If not, fear, blame and disobedience will follow just like it did in Saul's life. And you may miss your biggest blessing. What blessings have we possibly missed because we just couldn't wait on God? (see 1 Samuel 13: 13)
Psalm 27 says, "Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord." Sounds like a command to me. Again in Psalm 37 we read, "Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him." See, it does matter how we wait. The Bible says to wait patiently. Isaiah 40: 31 says, "they that wait upon the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings as eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint." Just as God's ways and thoughts are higher than ours (Isaiah 55: 9), His timing is not our timing. I have heard it said that God's timing is perfect and that He is never late. I must admit that I have, at times, thought that God was really, really late in coming to my rescue. But you know what? It always, and I mean always, worked out in the end, in His perfect timing. Things never worked when I took matters into my own hands and had to reap the consequences of my impatience. If you haven't learned this lesson for yourself, take it from someone who has been there.
Don't doubt God's goodness. Remember what He has brought you through in the past. Use that memory to boost your faith that He will bring you through now. He is the same God that parted your Red Sea last year and let you walk out of bondage. He is the same God who collapsed the walls of your personal Jericho. But remember that you may have to march around the walls a few times. He releases prisoners. He sets the captives free. He fights for those who are His own. He is for you, never against you. How do I know that? His Word tells me so. He binds the broken hearted and gives you beauty for ashes. He restores the years that the locusts have eaten and gives you a double portion for your former shame. Don't lose heart, my friend. He knows. He sees. He cares. He loves you. There is more to your problem than you can see. But He's got it under control. Trust Him. Wait for Him. Who knows? He could be coming, just around the corner, today!
Still waiting,
Donna Schultz
If you would like to be added to the weekly e-mail of Tuesday's with Jesus, please e-mail Savemom@aol.com
Tuesday, April 25, 2006
#43 The Heart of Worship
April 25, 2006
"[Job] fell to the ground in worship and said: 'Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.' " (Job 1: 20b-21)
The Bible tells us that Job was a righteous and upright man who feared God and shunned evil. The overriding question has always been, "why did Job suffer?" and correspondingly "why does any righteous person have to suffer"? However, today I would like to focus on Job's ability and willingness to worship and praise the Lord in spite of his hardships.
Job was devoted to God and knew that He was sovereign in all things and in all circumstances. He knew that God could bless and that God could take away His blessings. He was in charge and in control. I believe that Job saw God. Not visibly, but he had revelation of God's power, might and worthiness to be praised, no matter what. Job also had an adversary. An accuser. Satan, the accuser of the brethren. (Revelation 12:10) Satan was convinced that the only reason that Job led a righteous and blameless life was because of the abundance of blessings the Lord had given him. He wanted to see what would happen if Job lost everything. How righteous would he be now? So God allowed Job's life to be turned upside down. He lost his sheep that provided clothing and food. He lost his 3000 camels that provided transportation and milk. 1000 oxen and their power to plow and provide food and milk. 500 donkeys. His servants were all dead. The worse loss was yet to come. The loss of all of his 10 children when a tornado whipped across the desert and killed every last one of them. His losses were financial, emotional, physical and spiritual. Would Job serve the Lord now? Absolutely!
Job followed adversity with adoration. Woe with worship. He did not give in to bitterness or blame God. His wife told him to "curse God and die". But he responded, "Shall we accept good from God and not trouble?" He called her a foolish, spiritually ignorant woman. (see Job 2:9-10) He praised God in spite of it all. Job showed us that we can be devoted to God without receiving anything in return. He showed us the heart of worship. It's not about us...it's all about Him!
It's all about Him because He is God. Pure and simple. He is the Creator and Sustainer of all life. He is the King and the Lord. He is. Period. And because of that He is worthy and entitled to our worship. No matter what. And the sooner we stop seeing Him as a slot machine, dispensing answers to our prayers, the sooner we will begin to see Him for who He truly is and we will worship Him because He is worthy to be worshipped. We will seek His face, not His hand. We will take our eyes off of ourselves and fix our eyes on Him. As a result, our relationship with Him will go to a whole new level of intimacy.
Of course we should thank the Lord for all of His blessings and goodness to us. But we should be more in tune with seeking His face and gaining revelation of Who He truly is than being interested in what He can do for us. My goodness, He sent His only Son to die on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins! If He never did another thing for us, that's enough! He allowed you to wake up this morning and breathe air into your lungs. I believe He does that to allow us one more day to possibly, just maybe, seek Him today. Really seek Him...He longs for that. He wants that from you.
Like Job, you too have an adversary. The same one..Satan. In the midst of your trouble he will tell you that God isn't there. God doesn't love you. You have been so bad that God will never bless you again. You brought this upon yourself. Curse God and die! The book of Job proved to us that these are all lies. Job was righteous. He did nothing to precipitate his adversities. And God did bless him abundantly in the end. God is God. He is Holy. He is in control. Job gave us a beautiful example of praising God in the midst of...in spite of...
God wants to bless us. He wants to be good and gracious to us. But I believe that He wants us to know Him more than He wants to make our lives comfortable. He wants an intimate relationship with us. He wants our hearts. He wants us to fall in love with Him. He wants us to long to live in His presence. And how insulting it must be when we stop praising Him because life isn't going quite the way we would want it to. How would we feel if our own children only loved us and showed love to us when we were giving them presents? I think that I would be very sad and very insulted. I want them to love me because I'm their mom. I want them to spend time with me because of that love, not because of what I can give them. And God is that same kind of parent.
Worship God for who He is. Seek His face. I dare you to really, from the bottom of your heart pray, "God, show me more of who you are. Show me your glory. Give me a spirit of wisdom and revelation so that I may know you better (Ephesians 1:17). The only thing I want is you. If you never give me another blessing, bless me with fullness in the knowledge of you. Draw me close. I want you and you alone." And since this is God's heart...He will answer you and you will see things you've never seen before. I promise you that!
No matter what you are going through today, let Job be an example to you. He cried,"Blessed be the name of the Lord" in the midst of his trial. Let the words of the prophet Habukkak be another example. "Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior." (Habukkak 3: 17-18)
That is the heart of worship!
Donna SchultzSavemom@aol.com
"[Job] fell to the ground in worship and said: 'Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.' " (Job 1: 20b-21)
The Bible tells us that Job was a righteous and upright man who feared God and shunned evil. The overriding question has always been, "why did Job suffer?" and correspondingly "why does any righteous person have to suffer"? However, today I would like to focus on Job's ability and willingness to worship and praise the Lord in spite of his hardships.
Job was devoted to God and knew that He was sovereign in all things and in all circumstances. He knew that God could bless and that God could take away His blessings. He was in charge and in control. I believe that Job saw God. Not visibly, but he had revelation of God's power, might and worthiness to be praised, no matter what. Job also had an adversary. An accuser. Satan, the accuser of the brethren. (Revelation 12:10) Satan was convinced that the only reason that Job led a righteous and blameless life was because of the abundance of blessings the Lord had given him. He wanted to see what would happen if Job lost everything. How righteous would he be now? So God allowed Job's life to be turned upside down. He lost his sheep that provided clothing and food. He lost his 3000 camels that provided transportation and milk. 1000 oxen and their power to plow and provide food and milk. 500 donkeys. His servants were all dead. The worse loss was yet to come. The loss of all of his 10 children when a tornado whipped across the desert and killed every last one of them. His losses were financial, emotional, physical and spiritual. Would Job serve the Lord now? Absolutely!
Job followed adversity with adoration. Woe with worship. He did not give in to bitterness or blame God. His wife told him to "curse God and die". But he responded, "Shall we accept good from God and not trouble?" He called her a foolish, spiritually ignorant woman. (see Job 2:9-10) He praised God in spite of it all. Job showed us that we can be devoted to God without receiving anything in return. He showed us the heart of worship. It's not about us...it's all about Him!
It's all about Him because He is God. Pure and simple. He is the Creator and Sustainer of all life. He is the King and the Lord. He is. Period. And because of that He is worthy and entitled to our worship. No matter what. And the sooner we stop seeing Him as a slot machine, dispensing answers to our prayers, the sooner we will begin to see Him for who He truly is and we will worship Him because He is worthy to be worshipped. We will seek His face, not His hand. We will take our eyes off of ourselves and fix our eyes on Him. As a result, our relationship with Him will go to a whole new level of intimacy.
Of course we should thank the Lord for all of His blessings and goodness to us. But we should be more in tune with seeking His face and gaining revelation of Who He truly is than being interested in what He can do for us. My goodness, He sent His only Son to die on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins! If He never did another thing for us, that's enough! He allowed you to wake up this morning and breathe air into your lungs. I believe He does that to allow us one more day to possibly, just maybe, seek Him today. Really seek Him...He longs for that. He wants that from you.
Like Job, you too have an adversary. The same one..Satan. In the midst of your trouble he will tell you that God isn't there. God doesn't love you. You have been so bad that God will never bless you again. You brought this upon yourself. Curse God and die! The book of Job proved to us that these are all lies. Job was righteous. He did nothing to precipitate his adversities. And God did bless him abundantly in the end. God is God. He is Holy. He is in control. Job gave us a beautiful example of praising God in the midst of...in spite of...
God wants to bless us. He wants to be good and gracious to us. But I believe that He wants us to know Him more than He wants to make our lives comfortable. He wants an intimate relationship with us. He wants our hearts. He wants us to fall in love with Him. He wants us to long to live in His presence. And how insulting it must be when we stop praising Him because life isn't going quite the way we would want it to. How would we feel if our own children only loved us and showed love to us when we were giving them presents? I think that I would be very sad and very insulted. I want them to love me because I'm their mom. I want them to spend time with me because of that love, not because of what I can give them. And God is that same kind of parent.
Worship God for who He is. Seek His face. I dare you to really, from the bottom of your heart pray, "God, show me more of who you are. Show me your glory. Give me a spirit of wisdom and revelation so that I may know you better (Ephesians 1:17). The only thing I want is you. If you never give me another blessing, bless me with fullness in the knowledge of you. Draw me close. I want you and you alone." And since this is God's heart...He will answer you and you will see things you've never seen before. I promise you that!
No matter what you are going through today, let Job be an example to you. He cried,"Blessed be the name of the Lord" in the midst of his trial. Let the words of the prophet Habukkak be another example. "Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior." (Habukkak 3: 17-18)
That is the heart of worship!
Donna SchultzSavemom@aol.com
#43 The Heart of Worship
April 25, 2006
"[Job] fell to the ground in worship and said: 'Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.' " (Job 1: 20b-21)
The Bible tells us that Job was a righteous and upright man who feared God and shunned evil. The overriding question has always been, "why did Job suffer?" and correspondingly "why does any righteous person have to suffer"? However, today I would like to focus on Job's ability and willingness to worship and praise the Lord in spite of his hardships.
Job was devoted to God and knew that He was sovereign in all things and in all circumstances. He knew that God could bless and that God could take away His blessings. He was in charge and in control. I believe that Job saw God. Not visibly, but he had revelation of God's power, might and worthiness to be praised, no matter what. Job also had an adversary. An accuser. Satan, the accuser of the brethren. (Revelation 12:10) Satan was convinced that the only reason that Job led a righteous and blameless life was because of the abundance of blessings the Lord had given him. He wanted to see what would happen if Job lost everything. How righteous would he be now? So God allowed Job's life to be turned upside down. He lost his sheep that provided clothing and food. He lost his 3000 camels that provided transportation and milk. 1000 oxen and their power to plow and provide food and milk. 500 donkeys. His servants were all dead. The worse loss was yet to come. The loss of all of his 10 children when a tornado whipped across the desert and killed every last one of them. His losses were financial, emotional, physical and spiritual. Would Job serve the Lord now? Absolutely!
Job followed adversity with adoration. Woe with worship. He did not give in to bitterness or blame God. His wife told him to "curse God and die". But he responded, "Shall we accept good from God and not trouble?" He called her a foolish, spiritually ignorant woman. (see Job 2:9-10) He praised God in spite of it all. Job showed us that we can be devoted to God without receiving anything in return. He showed us the heart of worship. It's not about us...it's all about Him!
It's all about Him because He is God. Pure and simple. He is the Creator and Sustainer of all life. He is the King and the Lord. He is. Period. And because of that He is worthy and entitled to our worship. No matter what. And the sooner we stop seeing Him as a slot machine, dispensing answers to our prayers, the sooner we will begin to see Him for who He truly is and we will worship Him because He is worthy to be worshipped. We will seek His face, not His hand. We will take our eyes off of ourselves and fix our eyes on Him. As a result, our relationship with Him will go to a whole new level of intimacy.
Of course we should thank the Lord for all of His blessings and goodness to us. But we should be more in tune with seeking His face and gaining revelation of Who He truly is than being interested in what He can do for us. My goodness, He sent His only Son to die on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins! If He never did another thing for us, that's enough! He allowed you to wake up this morning and breathe air into your lungs. I believe He does that to allow us one more day to possibly, just maybe, seek Him today. Really seek Him...He longs for that. He wants that from you.
Like Job, you too have an adversary. The same one..Satan. In the midst of your trouble he will tell you that God isn't there. God doesn't love you. You have been so bad that God will never bless you again. You brought this upon yourself. Curse God and die! The book of Job proved to us that these are all lies. Job was righteous. He did nothing to precipitate his adversities. And God did bless him abundantly in the end. God is God. He is Holy. He is in control. Job gave us a beautiful example of praising God in the midst of...in spite of...
God wants to bless us. He wants to be good and gracious to us. But I believe that He wants us to know Him more than He wants to make our lives comfortable. He wants an intimate relationship with us. He wants our hearts. He wants us to fall in love with Him. He wants us to long to live in His presence. And how insulting it must be when we stop praising Him because life isn't going quite the way we would want it to. How would we feel if our own children only loved us and showed love to us when we were giving them presents? I think that I would be very sad and very insulted. I want them to love me because I'm their mom. I want them to spend time with me because of that love, not because of what I can give them. And God is that same kind of parent.
Worship God for who He is. Seek His face. I dare you to really, from the bottom of your heart pray, "God, show me more of who you are. Show me your glory. Give me a spirit of wisdom and revelation so that I may know you better (Ephesians 1:17). The only thing I want is you. If you never give me another blessing, bless me with fullness in the knowledge of you. Draw me close. I want you and you alone." And since this is God's heart...He will answer you and you will see things you've never seen before. I promise you that!
No matter what you are going through today, let Job be an example to you. He cried,"Blessed be the name of the Lord" in the midst of his trial. Let the words of the prophet Habukkak be another example. "Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior." (Habukkak 3: 17-18)
That is the heart of worship!
Donna SchultzSavemom@aol.com
"[Job] fell to the ground in worship and said: 'Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.' " (Job 1: 20b-21)
The Bible tells us that Job was a righteous and upright man who feared God and shunned evil. The overriding question has always been, "why did Job suffer?" and correspondingly "why does any righteous person have to suffer"? However, today I would like to focus on Job's ability and willingness to worship and praise the Lord in spite of his hardships.
Job was devoted to God and knew that He was sovereign in all things and in all circumstances. He knew that God could bless and that God could take away His blessings. He was in charge and in control. I believe that Job saw God. Not visibly, but he had revelation of God's power, might and worthiness to be praised, no matter what. Job also had an adversary. An accuser. Satan, the accuser of the brethren. (Revelation 12:10) Satan was convinced that the only reason that Job led a righteous and blameless life was because of the abundance of blessings the Lord had given him. He wanted to see what would happen if Job lost everything. How righteous would he be now? So God allowed Job's life to be turned upside down. He lost his sheep that provided clothing and food. He lost his 3000 camels that provided transportation and milk. 1000 oxen and their power to plow and provide food and milk. 500 donkeys. His servants were all dead. The worse loss was yet to come. The loss of all of his 10 children when a tornado whipped across the desert and killed every last one of them. His losses were financial, emotional, physical and spiritual. Would Job serve the Lord now? Absolutely!
Job followed adversity with adoration. Woe with worship. He did not give in to bitterness or blame God. His wife told him to "curse God and die". But he responded, "Shall we accept good from God and not trouble?" He called her a foolish, spiritually ignorant woman. (see Job 2:9-10) He praised God in spite of it all. Job showed us that we can be devoted to God without receiving anything in return. He showed us the heart of worship. It's not about us...it's all about Him!
It's all about Him because He is God. Pure and simple. He is the Creator and Sustainer of all life. He is the King and the Lord. He is. Period. And because of that He is worthy and entitled to our worship. No matter what. And the sooner we stop seeing Him as a slot machine, dispensing answers to our prayers, the sooner we will begin to see Him for who He truly is and we will worship Him because He is worthy to be worshipped. We will seek His face, not His hand. We will take our eyes off of ourselves and fix our eyes on Him. As a result, our relationship with Him will go to a whole new level of intimacy.
Of course we should thank the Lord for all of His blessings and goodness to us. But we should be more in tune with seeking His face and gaining revelation of Who He truly is than being interested in what He can do for us. My goodness, He sent His only Son to die on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins! If He never did another thing for us, that's enough! He allowed you to wake up this morning and breathe air into your lungs. I believe He does that to allow us one more day to possibly, just maybe, seek Him today. Really seek Him...He longs for that. He wants that from you.
Like Job, you too have an adversary. The same one..Satan. In the midst of your trouble he will tell you that God isn't there. God doesn't love you. You have been so bad that God will never bless you again. You brought this upon yourself. Curse God and die! The book of Job proved to us that these are all lies. Job was righteous. He did nothing to precipitate his adversities. And God did bless him abundantly in the end. God is God. He is Holy. He is in control. Job gave us a beautiful example of praising God in the midst of...in spite of...
God wants to bless us. He wants to be good and gracious to us. But I believe that He wants us to know Him more than He wants to make our lives comfortable. He wants an intimate relationship with us. He wants our hearts. He wants us to fall in love with Him. He wants us to long to live in His presence. And how insulting it must be when we stop praising Him because life isn't going quite the way we would want it to. How would we feel if our own children only loved us and showed love to us when we were giving them presents? I think that I would be very sad and very insulted. I want them to love me because I'm their mom. I want them to spend time with me because of that love, not because of what I can give them. And God is that same kind of parent.
Worship God for who He is. Seek His face. I dare you to really, from the bottom of your heart pray, "God, show me more of who you are. Show me your glory. Give me a spirit of wisdom and revelation so that I may know you better (Ephesians 1:17). The only thing I want is you. If you never give me another blessing, bless me with fullness in the knowledge of you. Draw me close. I want you and you alone." And since this is God's heart...He will answer you and you will see things you've never seen before. I promise you that!
No matter what you are going through today, let Job be an example to you. He cried,"Blessed be the name of the Lord" in the midst of his trial. Let the words of the prophet Habukkak be another example. "Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior." (Habukkak 3: 17-18)
That is the heart of worship!
Donna SchultzSavemom@aol.com
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