Holy Departures

“Then the glory of the LORD rose and moved to the threshold…Then the glory of the LORD departed from over the threshold of the temple and stopped above the cherubim.  They stopped at the entrance of the east gate…and the glory of the God of Israel was above them…The glory of the LORD went up from within the city and stopped above the mountain east” Ezekiel 10:4, 18-19, 11:23.

When I was pregnant with Michael Bruce’s parents drove their trailer down and parked it in our drive.  They were here for three weeks just doing life with us, as we awaited our son’s entrance into this world.  It was a sweet time with lots of laughter, love and fellowship.  The anticipated day came and the experience was all the sweeter because their presence was with us during the experience.  The afternoon they left Bruce and I stood in the driveway with our new baby in our arms and first watched them hook up the trailer.  After a few moments we watched them get in their car and get situated for their departure.  As the moments passed we could feel a bitter sweet moment between us.  Then we watched as their car went up the drive and their back lights disappeared.  We knew that they had to leave but there still was a sadness that they wouldn’t be with us any longer.

The Israelites had crowded other gods around the One true God.  They had set up their lives with themselves enthroned in the center.  Warning upon warning came from God, followed by the action of His presence being withdrawn from His children.  I can’t even begin to imagine the people as they saw that mighty cloud arise and begin moving away from the temple…first the inner court…then the doorframe…then the entrance to the camp…finally moved through the city and up to the top of the mountain. 

We have a Father who wants to be in the center of our families, and experience every drop of life with us.  He desires to be involved in every decision, share all of our laughter and wipe away every tear.  He will never depart from us but will respect any distance we put between us.  He has given us a choice to involve Him in every aspect of our lives.  The depth that we choose to involve God will be the depth of intimacy we experience with Him.  As we pursue intimacy with our Father we will experience the closeness of His presence and the faithfulness of His love.

Lifting the Cloud

“In all the travels…whenever the cloud lifted from above, they would set out; but if the cloud did not lift, they did not set out – until it lifted.  So the cloud of the LORD was over the tabernacle by day and fire was in the cloud by night, in the sight of all…during all of their travels” Ex 40:36-38.

One of the toughest things we will be asked of as Christians is to wait on God when we are ready to move on a decision.  If only we had something as visible like the Israelites did while they were waiting on a signal from God.  They had clear manifestations of the cloud during the day and fire during the night.  They knew when the sit tight and when to pack up and walk forward.  Scripture tells us that God was visible to all during all of their travels…no exclusions…not one person was shielded from this knowledge. 

While we might not have a visible cloud and column of fire to follow, our hearts provide a tabernacle where God dwells once we have accepted Christ Jesus.  We invite Him to take up residence in the temple of our hearts, having access to Him day and night.  Wherever we go God is with us…whatever we face we face with His protection and faithfulness.  The Bible states that He is all around us continuously.  ‘The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged’ De 31:8. ‘… yes, the God of Israel will protect you from behind’ Isaiah 52:12.  The Bible encourages that we will understand His guidance when we walk through the darkness.  He takes the classroom theories of faith and turns them into reality lessons for our spiritual growth.  He accomplishes all this while never leaving our side.  ‘Although the Lord gives you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, your teachers will be hidden no more; with your own eyes you will see them.  Your own ears will hear him. Right behind you a voice will say, "This is the way you should go," whether to the right or to the left’ Isaiah 30:20-21.

While the Israelites had external and visible manifestations of God, we as believers have the internal manifestation of the Holy Spirit to lift the cloud and show us the way.  He will be faithful in showing us every step of way until we see Him face to face.

The Great Liberator

“The Israelites had done all the work just as the LORD had commanded…Moses inspected the work and saw that they had done it just as the LORD had commanded.  So Moses blessed them” Exodus 39:42-43.

Well, well, well.  After a year of rollercoaster faith…up the hill of obedience followed by the out of control drop of rebellion comes the close of their year.  For 365 days they were tested and tried… instructed and commanded…sinful and forgiven.  It wasn’t pretty but it was their faith journey and they had finished strong in the Lord!

I only have to look at my own challenging seasons to see the same thing we have witnessed in Exodus.  God rescued me from something that had imprisoned me, but at the cost of my comfort and security.  I walked the journey grumbling and complaining but following in His footsteps.  I don’t know who was more exhausted during these seasons, me from worrying and calculating or God from patiently waiting and refining me.  My transforming faith walk has been anything but pretty just like the Israelites, but it has been something shared just between me and God…Father and daughter…the Liberator and the liberated. 

I am confident that some of you are entering into the wilderness, are presently walking it out or are thankfully leaving that challenging terrain.  You can be encouraged that God isn’t looking for perfection in the desert, but looking for spiritual progression in our hearts and in my minds.  He is calling us to fellowship and inscribing upon our hearts our own set of commandments by which to live.  The most important commandment is still to love Him with every part of our mind, heart and spirit.  The things He chisels upon our hearts during these tough times will be a part of us forever.  At the end of our trial we will bring everything to Him for the final inspection like the Israelites did laying it before Him for His blessing.  We will be blessed by the painful and fearful journey that He has taken us on.  We will learn more in the uncertain times that in the calm and stable times.  And what we learn and who we became in Christ will be our blessing.

‘They will know that I am the LORD their God, who brought them out of Egypt so that I might dwell among them. I am the LORD their God’ Ex 29:46. ‘I will give them a heart to know me, that I am the LORD. They will be my people, and I will be their God, for they will return to me with all their heart’ Jeremiah 24:7.

Intentional Memories

“Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the desert…to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart…causing you to hunger and then feeding you.  When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the LORD your God for the good land he has given you.  Be careful that you do not forget the LORD your God” De 8:7, 10-11a.

One of the most certain things in human nature is our tendency to forget the power of certain experiences once we are removed from them.  There are two essential principles that are paramount in our fellowship with God.  The first is that we must be intentional in recalling the transforming work of God in certain seasons.  We must consciously choose to reminisce about the lack we faced and the provisions God gave us.  The second principle is to recognize that all things and all circumstances are under the supremacy of God.  He has both the ability and the authority to orchestrate our lives according to His purposes.  Thankfully, His purposes will always be for our good, motivated in love, and are perfect for what our hearts require.  ‘Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father…who does not change’ James 1:17.

In this short passage we should note that Moses didn’t just refer to God as Lord, but he described Him three times as ‘their God.’  The emphasis was clear then and it remains clear today.  We have a supernatural and supreme Deity that reigns in the universe and rules in our own lives.  We are subject to a King who wishes to expand His kingdom inviting all people into His plan of eternity.  We sit under the authority of an all-knowing God who desires to parlay His wisdom into our daily walk. 

‘Who is he, this King of glory? The LORD Almighty-- he is the King of glory’ Psalm 24:10.   May each of us keep in mind how we are the recipients of a love like none other, and show our deep gratitude, unwavering devotion and intimate worship to the Lord, our God.

Excellent and Profitable

“And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves in doing what is good.  These things are excellent and profitable for everyone” Titus 3:8b.

This morning while studying my Bible verses this particular verse stood out as I began considering the word ‘devotion.’  I looked up the word in several different resources to understand the true definition.  I liked Google the best which states that devotion means love, loyalty, or enthusiasm for a person, activity, and/or cause.  When I think of devotion I think of what my parents have for me.  I also am confident in my husband’s devotion to me over the course of 30 years.  I know that I am completely devoted to Bruce, my children, sisters, mother and friends. 

In light of our Scripture this morning, I am reminded that the most important object of our affection and devotion must be not only God, but the concerns of God’s heart.  Our definition states that true devotion is an enthusiasm for a person (God), activity (fellowship with God) and cause (things that break His heart).  We have a worldly menu of causes, and there is great work to be done.  Those who trust in God, that is you and me as Christians are instructed that we are to be devoted to Him, the fellowship, and the service.  The excellence of eternity must be offered to everyone for it is the will of God that no one perishes and everyone profits (2 Peter 3:9).

So what in the world does ‘doing good’ look like?  Doing good is having our behavior follow our thoughts and mindset.  That is why there is so much importance on feeding our minds with God’s word. Philippians 4:8 states, ‘Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.’  Once our minds are fed with the appetite of God our hearts will follow as we devote our time in worship, our resources in causes, and our service to accomplish the things of God.

When Love Saves

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” John 3:16.

I once read that true love is love that always benefits another.  It had such a powerful message to me that I wrote it in the front of my Bible.  I just realized this morning how that statement is the basis for the entire word of God.  This verse anchors the basis of Christianity, yet because of its familiarity it is easy to lose its powerful message.  God loved you and me in a way that we cannot fathom…a love that motivated Him to sacrifice His little boy on a tree…a love that had to look away from His child as He was dying so my children could live…a love that would benefit every person who believes in this act of agape love.

What if someone asked us to look away as our child was being brutally murdered?  What if someone asked us to allow the death of our child to serve as a substitute to save unknown children?  That is what God did for you and did for me.   The blood of His own Son continues to save today as it saved when it flowed.  The Bible states that through His blood we are made clean, and by His stripes we are healed (Isaiah 53:5).  That is love…God’s love…and the work has been done for not only us but our children, grandchildren and future generations.  This morning in considering this fresh truth I am amazed that I ever doubt…that I ever question…that I ever am anxious about anything. 

Through His love and Christ’s sacrifice we are saved so why don’t we believe the same blood has the power to deliver us… deliver us from our present circumstances…deliver us from the fear of our future… deliver us from the guilt of our past sins.  We can have both hope and confidence that the power that saved is the same power that delivers.  When your circumstances become a source of oppression just get on your knees and cry out to God for deliverance.

‘Father, I believe that the same blood that saved me will deliver me from _____________...in the name of Jesus, Amen!’

The Lord Establishes

“The LORD declares to you that the LORD himself will establish a house…He is the one who will build...and establish” 2 Sam 7:11b, 13.

David’s heart was in the right place when he told Nathan, the prophet that he wished to build a house for the Lord.  He himself was nicely positioned in his own palace which God had given him as king.  David was probably bored as he looked around the palace wondering what his next project was.  The Lord spoke quickly and sternly.  ‘I will provide a place…I will assign that job…I have set boundaries around the work of your hands, David’ (paraphrase mine).

We must seek God for His assignments in our lives and throughout our days.  We can strive and toil in areas we were never meant to work.  We can stumble through activities that busy and distract us from His purpose and plan.  I was blessed this morning to consider these in my Bible Study, A Woman’s Heart, Gods Dwelling Place.  Isaiah 30:21 promises us that He will speak and reveal every decision we need to make. ‘Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it.’ Isaiah 42:16 promises that He will lead us in unfamiliar circumstances, reveal and smooth out the obstacles.  ‘I will lead…by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will…make the rough places smooth.’ These are just two of the unending promises of the Lord when we walk with Him, and allow Him to determine our work. 

We must allow God the freedom to assign our work, and then listen for His voice to navigate us through the days to accomplish what He set out for us to accomplish.  Sometimes we will be the one who will ‘build Him a house’ and other times we will not be chosen for that work.  Our part is to inquire of the Lord, wait for His voice and follow His lead.  His ways will usher in a greater work in the kingdom while giving us a greater life while on this earth.

‘As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways…so is my word that goes out from my mouth:  It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it’ Isaiah 55:9, 11.

On Their Minds

“But Christ…fully saves and complete...is always living to intercede on their behalf” Hebrews 7:25 (Phillips).  “…because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God” Romans 8:27b.

One of the most spiritual comforts I have is the truth that both Christ and the Holy Spirit are constantly talking to God about me.  That means that they are in a continually state of discussion about my life… decisions I must make…adversities I will face…transformations I will experience.  How can this be that the Father, Son and Holy Spirit together speak my name, and I’m constantly on their mind?

 I only have to look at my own children to understand this phenomenon.  There is not an hour that passes when one of my children does not cross my mind.  I think of their jobs, their lives, their challenges, etc…  Bruce and I discuss them constantly and think of ways that we can help them, support them and direct them.  But the similarity stops there as parents for we do not possess the ability to save like our Intercessors possess.  Through the cross, Christ has the power to save and to save fully in every way for all of us who believe.  Through His spirit, we can know the mind of God as it is conveyed to us through the Holy Spirit’s intercession.  While we have love for our children, we lack ability to foresee their future.  While we have knowledge of our children’s lives, we lack wisdom in the unique things they will have to face.  The best thing we can do for our children and grandchildren is to cover them in prayer to the Ones who have all wisdom and power.  They have the answer for every step they must take, and the comfort for every bit of pain they must face.  The Father, Son and Holy Spirit speak their name continuously as well as your name.

We have a reason to celebrate in deep gratitude and humility when faced with the reality that this powerful Deity always has us on their mind and in their hearts.  One of my mother’s favorite songs has powerful lyrics that bless us all.

“Though His eyes were on the crowd that day
He looked ahead in time
Cause when He was on the cross
I was on His mind

He knew me, yet He loved me
He whose glory makes the Heaven shine
So unworthy of such mercy
Yet when He was on the cross
I was on His mind”

Songwriters:  Ronnie Hinson, Mike Payne

His Yes Means Yes

“But surely as God is faithful…For no matter how many promises God has made, they are ‘Yes’ in Christ.  And so through him the ‘Amen’ is spoken by us to the glory of God.  Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ” 2 Co 1:18, 20-21.

The words I promise are two little words that carry paramount implications.  I promise to love you through the good and the bad times…I promise that I will never leave you…I promise that I’ll never do that again…I promise I won’t repeat a word…I promise Lord that if you _________, I will _____________.  I have broken promises over the course of my life…promises of honesty, promises to never hide my spending again, a promise of a marriage 35 years ago.

Thankfully, we have a Father who will never break His promises to His children no matter if we break ours. How many times have we promised to pray more…fellowship with God more…get in His word more only to end the day with little contact with Him?  The wonderful thing about God’s promises is that they are not based on our commitment to follow through with our promises.  We might have consequences from not following through but if God promises something, He will be faithful.  His promises will always be Yes in Christ because of what Christ did for us.  God says ‘Yes’ to eternity because of what Christ did on the cross.  God says ‘Yes’ to providing for us because Christ’s sacrifice made us adoptive children.  God says ‘Yes’ to never leaving us because Christ was briefly separated from God so we will never be.  We can believe in the promises of God when He tells us something even if our eyes do not see it.  I have a promise from God tucked tenderly in my heart and I thank Him daily for that future fulfillment.  The miracle is not in the fulfilled promise but in the peace while walking to receive it.

We must stand firm in Christ and the work He accomplished on the cross.  If we confidently believe in the promises of God then our words will be He will instead of will He.  And all of us say 'Amen!'

External Commotion

“Now what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach.  It is not up in heaven, so that you have to ask, ‘Who will ascend…and get it…and proclaim it to us?’  Nor is it beyond the sea, so that you have to ask, ‘Who will cross…to get it…and proclaim it to us?’  No, the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart…Now choose life, so that you…may love the LORD your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him.  For the LORD is your life...” De 30:11-20.

 

Today’s passage is one of the most eloquent and beautiful exhortations in the Bible.  It was spoken by a man who understood that life would crowd in and steal God’s message.  It is a speech that laid out the dangers of being spiritually lazy, depending on others for their fellowship with God.  Moses had been both leader and spiritual intercessor for these people.  He had shown them that fellowship with God led to truth, promise and personal revelation.  Repeatedly they had turned away from the Lord although they had the message in their heart and mind.  They allowed the distractions and earthly callings to elevate their focus above their time with God.  Moses cautioned them ‘But if your heart turns away…and if you are drawn away... you will not live long in the land you are …to enter and possess’ De 30:18.

God has a beautiful plan for each of our lives but He is not going to just drop it from heaven.  Only will we determine His purpose through the dedicated and intentional time we carve out for Him.  Life will always present a landscape of competing worship…those things that we deem our time must go towards.  We must have an inward devotion to God to receive the secret things of the Lord (De 29:29).  We all have a land He wants us to enter, a land where our greatest strengths collide with His greatest power.  Our spiritual impact is determined by our spiritual fellowship with the Father.  No one is going 'to ascend to heaven or cross the sea' for us to determine our future.  It is only through time with the Father and communion with His spirit.  The world will draw us away if we allow it so it is so important to consider Paul’s beautiful words to the Colossians, ‘…set your hearts on things above…Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.  For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God’ (Colossians 3:1-2).  We can all have the same measure of God in our lives...it is up to us to determine the level of intimacy we share with Him.

I read a powerful statement this morning in my Bible Study, A Woman’s Heart – God’s Dwelling Place, p. 142.  Beth Moore states that we are all to be priests for God with the same calling the priests of the Old Testament had upon their lives.  We are to have ‘internal devotion in the midst of external commotion.’

‘Now choose life…’

In These Days...

“‘The Lord has done this for me,’ she said.  ‘In these days he has shown his favor and taken away…’” Luke 1:25.

She looked into the mirror and wondered where her youth had gone…wisps of gray hair that had fallen around her face…deep wrinkles that framed her eyes…a posture that seemed too heavy to hold upright.  Her name was Elizabeth and her life had been defined by her barrenness.  But everything was about to change as the Lord gave them new hope…a new message…a new direction for their lives.  She could finally draw a line between seasons…‘those days I was barren, but these days I am with child.  Those days I lacked, but these days I have.’ 

But what if the opposite is true in your life today?  What if your story is ‘those days I had, but these days I lack?’ What situation are you praying for God to take away?  Like Elizabeth we all tend to associate favor with receiving.  The flipside of that is when we lack something…our health…our desire…our dream… we tend to associate it with disfavor.  I’m sure like Elizabeth we lie awake at night in our lack and wonder why me?  We look at others who might not be living a Christian life and determine the injustice of it all.  Can’t we all relate to Elizabeth?  She had to watch other women swell with the blessing of pregnancy as she walked out her life.  Walking out our lives is not much different.  What about the woman who lies by her dying husband watching the perfect health of other couples?  What about the man who will never experience his dream because of a family obligation he must fulfill?  What about those parents who raised their child in church but are witnessing the destructive path they are taking, while watching unchurched children prosper.  How can we encourage the mother who lost her child and watches the neglect of other mothers with their children?  It can be dizzying when trying to reconcile favor and disfavor…the have’s and the have not’s. 

We will live in a constant state of chaos if we try to reason it all out.  We must apply God’s truth to both ‘these days and those days.’  These truths must be anchored in all seasons and circumstances so that our faith will carry us through our days.  These beautiful truths are that God loves us with such relentless love that He will only give us His best at the best time.  These awesome truths include that whatever we face our Father will never turn His back and walk away.  These truths are steeped with divine intention and sovereign wisdom over the long view of our earthly lives.   We must hold tight to the faith we have in Jesus and know that one beautiful day…a day where our feet hit the pavement of heaven…we will never lack again.  We will stand shoulder to shoulder with Christ, standing in the presence of our Father who did everything in His power to navigate us home.

‘The Lord has done this for us.’

Working At It

“Make a plate of pure gold and engrave on it as on a seal:  HOLY TO THE LORD…It will be on Aaron’s forehead continually so that they will be acceptable to the LORD” Exodus 28:36, 38b.

I can’t say enough about the rich symbolism and foreshadowing of the Old Testament.  Every word drips with intentional detail as God instructs His chosen on the sacred garments for His priests.  When I consider the garments the priests were commanded to wear I too know we are to follow suit.  When we build our lives with God being our greatest treasure He will be continually on our mind.  We are to carry ourselves as those engraved on Christ’s palms and sealed by the Holy Spirit. 

We have been called to be a priesthood for God’s work and set apart for His holiness to reflect. “Martin Luther pointed out in his Babylonian Captivity of the Church that “all we who are Christians are priests,” and no believer has greater access to the Creator than any other. In Christ, there is a true priesthood of all believers. All of us who trust in Jesus alone for salvation have free access into His presence, and all of our lawful vocations are set apart for true God-honoring service. The janitor who does his work to the Lord is in no worse position spiritually than the most gifted preacher on the planet, for all Christians have been declared righteous servants of the creator God”  Ligonier Ministries.

We will follow whatever is continually on our mind.  If our thoughts are on the work of the Lord then that is where our feet will take us.  If we are consumed with a relationship, a job or image then that will be our focus.  There is so much to do in the kingdom of God, and we can only know our anointing through time spent with the Father.  God will reveal our calling, equip us to accomplish it and empower us to fulfill it.

^“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving” Col 3:23-24.